Silent Enemy
by StrawberryTrebutchet
Summary: Harry was nine-years-old when he was kidnapped by Death Eaters and Voldemort. Now, two years later, he is about to start his first year at Hogwarts. All is well, but Harry is still silently struggling with what happened. What will change? How will things be different? Follows the events in 'Growing Up At Hogwarts' and 'Nightmare Most Real' but can also be read as a separate story.
1. Chapter 1: First Year at Last!

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter isn't mine, anything you recognise is from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone/Sorcerer's Stone.**

 **A/N: Hello everyone!**

 **If you have read _Growing Up At Hogwarts_ or _Nightmare Most Real_ , hello again! If not, that's okay. Although it is recommended that you read them in order to get a better idea of this story, it is not necessary as long as you know a bit of background.**

 **Growing Up at Hogwarts: Dumbledore decides to take Harry in instead of leaving him with the Dursleys, and Harry grows up at Hogwarts in the primary care of Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall. The story goes through scenes of Harry's life up until his ninth birthday.**

 **Nightmare Most Real: When Harry is nine years old, he is kidnapped and tortured by Death Eaters and Voldemort. By the end of the story, the Minister knows what has happened but decides to not alert the general public to Voldemort's secret return. The teachers at Hogwarts know, several important Aurors know, and that's about it. Voldemort is in hiding.**

 **This story is basically set two years after the events in _Nightmare Most Real,_ and it is mainly going to be about how Harry is still struggling with what happened, how he deals with it, and how the story changes from what happens in the books. Harry is mostly okay and normal, but he still gets flashbacks, nightmares and is still impacted by what happened. Over the years he has tried to block out most memories of the event, and has tried his hardest not to think about it again. So there you go. **

**At the moment I've got up until 5th Year planned.**

 **So thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy it!**

 **\- StrawberryTrebutchet :)**

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 **Chapter One: First Year At Last!**

Over two years had passed. Two years since Harry had been kidnapped by Voldemort from the very grounds of Hogwarts and tortured. And many things had changed. He had grown older, of course, as everybody does. Wiser. Harry had been forced to grow up fast. He had been exposed to the dark truths of the world, knew that it wasn't all fun and games before he even turned ten. Though the years had passed now, and things had gotten steadily better, the horrors of what had happened to Harry were still there, like a lingering fly, hovering over Harry as a dark cloud would on a stormy day. There had been no sign of Voldemort since Harry had been rescued. The Ministry had worked hard to find him, silently, in the first few months afterwards, but had mostly given up since then. The large majority of the Wizarding World remained ignorant to The Dark Lord's return.

Harry stood next to Minerva McGonagall. They were at Kings Cross Station, and Harry was about to get onto the Hogwarts Express for the very first time in his life. He may have grown up at Hogwarts, he may have seen rounds and rounds of First Years come through every year to be sorted, but he had never come close to the Hogwarts Express. This time he would finally be going to Hogwarts as a student.

Harry couldn't wait.

Smoke from the engines of the Hogwarts Express drifted over their heads and floated down amongst the chattering crowd around them. Cats of every colour wound here and there between people's legs, and Harry smiled as a purple-coloured kitten darted between his legs and disappeared behind a red-headed family standing a little way away. Owls hooted to each other through the smoke, and Harry's attention was brought to his own owl- a beautiful snowy-white one that he'd called Hedwig. They'd bought her when they'd gone shopping for his wand in Diagon Alley a week previously. She was Harry's first real pet, and although he had no one to send letters to, at least not yet, and Hedwig had spent the rest of the holidays flying around the castle and staying in his room instead of flying off on important letter-delivery missions, Harry thought she was the best pet he could ever have.

The first few carriages of the train were already packed full of students, some hanging out of the windows to talk to their families, some fighting over seats and luggage space. Harry clutched his trunk tightly against himself, gazing around in amazement. Minerva was holding Hedwig in her brand-new cage. Occasionally a few students who spotted them glanced their way, waving and calling out a cheerful 'Heya, Professor!' or 'See you there, Potter!' All the students, minus the new First Years, were more than familiar with the sight of Harry Potter being accompanied by a teacher, especially more in recent years.

The train's whistle suddenly rang loudly above the noises of the crowd, and Minerva leant forwards and gave Harry a tight hug.

'I'll see you soon,' she said, smiling at him.

'Won't we take until dark to get back?' asked Harry, taking Hedwig's cage from her and looking around again.

'Yes,' answered Minerva. 'But the time will go by quickly, just you wait. Now have fun, okay? Try and make some friends with the other first years. You'll be sharing a dorm together with some of them, after all.'

She caught the worried look on Harry's face and gave him another small hug.

'It's going to be fine, Harry. You know that, right?'

Harry looked down at the ground and shuffled his feet. 'Yeah. . .'

He was nervous. Nervous he would make any friends. Nervous he wouldn't fit in. Harry couldn't say he'd had a lonely childhood, or even an isolated one, but he'd never really had any friends his age before. Everyone at Hogwarts had been older.

The train gave another whistle, and Minerva led Harry up to one of the carriage doors, where she helped him lift his truck inside. Harry stepped through and went into the nearest empty compartment, dragging his very heavy trunk behind him. Most of his stuff was already there, but as he would now be living in a dormitory instead of his room next to Albus' office, Harry had packed several of his favourite books and a good number of his clothes as well as his school supplies. It would be easy enough to pop back to his room if he forgot anything, but of course, it was better if he never forgot anything in the first place.

Yep, Harry was nervous all right.

After placing the trunk under his seat, and putting Hedwig's cage on one of the shelves at the top of the compartment, Harry sat down and peered out of the window. Minerva was standing back on the platform and gave him a wave when she saw him. Harry lifted his hand up to the glass and gave a wave back.

'Goodbye!' he yelled, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. Harry sat back in his seat, feeling a small thrill of exhilaration as the train began to move. It gained speed, and soon the platform had disappeared behind a corner to be replaced by houses flashing past the window.

After a few minutes, the door to the compartment slid open suddenly and a red-haired boy who looked to be about his age poked his head in.

'Anyone sitting there?' he asked, pointing at the seat opposite Harry. 'Everywhere else is full.'

Harry shook his head slowly, and the boy smiled and sat down.

'I'm Ron, by the way. Ron Weasley,' he said.

'Nice to meet you,' said Harry nervously. 'I'm Harry. . . Harry Potter.'

Predictably, the boy gave an exclamation of surprise. Harry was used to it by now, of course, but it still made him want to grimace. 'Harry Potter? _The_ Harry Potter?'

'Um, yeah,' said Harry, shifting in his seat.

'Woah! That means you grew up at Hogwarts, with Dumbledore an all!'

Harry blinked. Usually people weren't interested in where he lived, though to be fair, most of the children he'd met had already been at Hogwarts.

'Yeah, I did.'

'That's really cool,' said Ron matter-of-factly. 'What's it like? My brothers are already there, but they never tell me anything.'

'You have brothers?'

'Yeah. Five of them, actually. Bill and Charlie are adults now, so they're not at Hogwarts, but Percy and Fred and George are.'

'Wow.'

There was a short pause.

'So. . . did you _really_ defeat You-Know-Who?' asked Ron hesitantly.

Harry looked down, immediately aware of his heart thumping hard against his chest. 'Yeah,' he mumbled quietly, trying to push away the thoughts that had suddenly been brought to the forefront of his mind. _No, no I haven't. . . I never defeated him. . . he was never gone. . . he was there. . ._

'Oh. So you have the scar.'

'Yeah.'

'Cool,' said Ron again, and Harry felt a rush of relief that he didn't say anything else. He took a deep breath and rushed to change the subject.

'So. . . five brothers?'

'Yes, and I also have a sister, but she's a year younger than us. Bill was Head Boy and Charlie was Quidditch Captain. Now Percy's a Prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they're really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it's no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I've got Bill's old robes, Charlie's old wand, and I used to have Percy's old rat.' Ron's ears had gone pink. He seemed to think he'd said too much, because he trailed off and glanced out the window. Harry didn't mind, though. He liked listening.

'What happened to him?' asked Harry. 'Did he die?'

'No. Well, we don't really know. Disappeared a few years ago. I reckon he just ran away, ya know?'

'Hedwig's my first pet,' said Harry, indicating to the edge of the cage he could see poking out from the shelf above Ron. Ron stood up to get a better look.

'Woah, an owl!'

While they had been talking, the train had carried them out of London. Now they were speeding past fields full of sheep and cows, and even the occasional horse. They were both quiet for a time, watching the fields and small farmhouses flash past. Then, at around half past twelve, there was a great clattering outside in the corridor, shortly followed by the sight of a smiling, plump woman appearing at their compartment door.

'Anything off the trolley, dears?'

Harry, who had heard about the Trolley Lady and had brought some pocket money he had been saving for a while, stood up eagerly. Ron's ears went pink again, and he muttered something about sandwiches. Harry went out and looked at the wide range of sweets and chocolates the trolley supplied. In the end, he decided on some Chocolate Frogs and Every-Flavour Beans, bought them, and sat back down in his seat. Ron had taken out a lumpy package and unwrapped it. It contained four sandwiches.

'Mum always forgets I don't like corned beef,' he said, pulling one of them apart.

Harry made a face. 'Have one of these,' he said, pointing to a chocolate frog. 'Go on-'

'No, it's fine, really,' said Ron. 'I can just. . . She hasn't got a lot of time, you know, with five of us.'

'Come on,' urged Harry. 'I've got too much anyway.' He _wanted_ to share. Ron looked uncertain, but eventually reached forwards to take a frog. It was a nice feeling, sitting there with Ron as they ate their way through the sweets.

'Do you collect the cards?' Harry asked, holding up the one he had just unwrapped.

'Yeah!' exclaimed Ron. 'I'm missing Agrippa. You don't happen to have her, d'you? Or Ptolemy?'

'Nope,' said Harry. 'I haven't got them either. I'm also missing Alberic Grunnion and a few others- Merlin, I think, and he's meant to be one of the really common ones!'

'Ah, well, you never know what you're going to get.' Ron took another Chocolate Frog and unwrapped it, taking a bite out of its head. ' _Dumbledore_ again.'

Harry grinned. 'He always finds it funny, when I get one with him on it,' he said. 'Says they got his picture all wrong, that he doesn't scratch his nose that way!'

Ron laughed.

They had a good time eating the Every-Flavoured Beans. The first one Ron got was sprouts, and Harry ended up getting one each of toast, coconut, baked beans, strawberry, curry, grass, coffee, sardines, and was even brave enough to nibble the end of a funny grey one Ron wouldn't touch, which turned out to be a very mild pepper.

The countryside they could now see past the window was becoming wilder. Gone were the neat fields and cottages. Now there were woods, twisting rivers and dark green hills. Soon after they'd finished most of the sweets, there was a knock on the door of their compartment and a round-faced boy came in. He looked tearful and upset.

'Sorry,' he said, 'but have any of you seen a toad at all?'

They shook their heads, and the boy gave a wail.

'I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!'

'He'll turn up eventually,' said Harry. 'Right?'

'Yes,' said the boy miserably. 'Well, if you see him...'

He left.

'Don't know why he's so bothered,' said Ron. 'If I'd brought a toad I'd lose it as quickly as I could. Then again, if Scabbers hadn't run away. . . I _wish_ I had a pet,' Ron finished miserably.

'You can use Hedwig later if you need to send any letters to your family,' offered Harry, and Ron smiled.

'Thanks! Tell you what, one of my brothers taught me a spell to change your hair colour. Wanna see?'

'Yes!' said Harry. 'I don't know any spells yet- I didn't think we were allowed to learn any.'

'Yeah well, not sure if I was allowed, but I'm going to learn eventually, right? What difference does it make.' Ron stuck his hand into his pocket and brought out an old, weathered looking wand, and had just raised it to point at Harry's head when the compartment door slid open again. The toadless boy was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her Hogwarts robes.

'Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one,' she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair and rather large front teeth.

'We've already told him we haven't seen it,' said Ron, but the girl wasn't listening, she was looking at the wand in his hand.

'Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see it, then.'

And she sat down. Ron looked taken aback.

'Er- all right.'

He cleared his throat and waved his wand.

' _Trees, grass, sprouts and peas,_

 _Change his hair to green, with ease!'_

Harry braced himself, waiting for the spell to hit- it would be interesting to see his hair in a different colour other than black- but nothing happened. There was an awkward silence.

'Are you sure that's a real spell?' said the girl. 'It's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple ones just for practice, and they've all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magical at all- it was ever such a surprise to get my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it's the very best school of Witchcraft there is, I've heard. I've learnt all our set books off by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough. I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?'

She said all this very fast. Harry looked at Ron and was relieved to see by his stunned face that he didn't have a clue of what half she'd just said either.

'I'm Ron Weasley,' Ron said.

'Harry Potter,' said Harry.

'Are you really?' said Hermione. 'I know all about you, of course- I got a few extra books for background reading and you're in them! They say you grew up at Hogwarts!' The last bit was said slightly hysterically. Harry tried not to look too baffled.

'Um, yeah, I did.'

'That's amazing!' cried Hermione. 'What was it like?'

'Ummm. . .'

Hermione suddenly seemed to realise why she had come into the compartment in the first place, and stood back up with an apologetic look at Neville. 'That's okay, I suppose you can tell me later when we get there. I'm ever so excited!'

And she left, taking the other boy with her.

Ron sighed and threw his wand to the side. 'Stupid spell- George gave it to me, bet he knew it was a dud.'

They sat in silence for a few more minutes, occasionally glancing out at the ever-changing landscape, before the compartment door once again slid open.

'Oh for the love of-' said Ron, making as if to stand up.

But it was not Hermione and Neville again. Instead, three boys had entered. The one standing in the middle had a long, pale face, and he seemed to be flanked on both sides by two thick and mean-looking. . . bodyguards?

'Is it true?' the pale boy said. 'They're saying all down the train that Harry Potter's in this compartment. Is it _you_?' He was looking at Harry pointedly, and Harry immediately felt uncomfortable. The boy seemed strangely familiar somehow as if Harry had seen him before, but he was certain he hadn't. . .

'Yeah,' he said slowly, glancing at the other two boys.

'Oh, this is Grabbe and this is Goyle,' said the boy carelessly, noticing where Harry was looking. 'And my name's Malfoy. Draco Malfoy.'

Ron gave a slight cough, which might have been hiding a snigger. Draco Malfoy looked at him.

'Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask who _you_ are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford.'

He turned back to Harry.

'You'll soon find out that some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there.'

He held out his hand to shake, but Harry didn't take it. He was starting to quite dislike this boy.

'No thank you,' he said as politely as he could. Draco Malfoy didn't go red, but a pink tinge appeared in his pale cheeks.

'I'd watch out if I were you, Potter,' he said slowly. 'Unless you're a bit more careful you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riff-raff like the Weasleys and it'll rub off on you.'

Harry felt a surge of anger seep through him, and he and Ron both stood up at the same time, Ron's face as red as his hair.

'What did you say?'

'Oh, you're going to fight us, are you?' Malfoy sneered.

'Unless. . . unless you get out now,' said Harry, more bravely than he felt. He hated fighting.

'But we don't feel like leaving, do we, boys? We've eaten all our food and you still seem to have some.'

Goyle reached towards the last few chocolate frogs, which lay next to Ron- Ron leapt forwards, but before he'd so much as touched Goyle, Hermione appeared again in the doorway, looking tired and out of breath.

'What on _Earth_ is going on?' she cried. 'Are you _fighting_?'

'No,' said Harry, taking Ron's arm and pulling him away from Goyle. 'We-'

But he was interrupted as Malfoy turned to look at Hermione with a look of disgust on his face. 'Who are _you_?'

Hermione seemed to falter a bit at his glance, but stood up straighter all the same. 'Hermione Granger.'

Malfoy grimaced even harder. 'Haven't heard of that name. You must be. . . _muggle-born._ '

'Watch it Malfoy,' said Ron, scowling, as at the same time Hermione spluttered, indignant;

'And so _what_ if I am?'

Malfoy ignored both of them and turned back to Grabbe and Goyle. 'Let's get out of here,' he told them. 'See you at school, _Potter._ '

And they left.

'What simply _awful_ boys!' said Hermione. 'Especially that blonde one!'

'Malfoy,' offered Harry.

'Yes, him. Well, I better be off, then. I was just up the front speaking to the driver and he says we're nearly there.'

After Hermione had left, they began to pull out their robes to get changed, Ron muttering about Malfoy under his breath as he went about putting his things in his pockets. The sky outside had begun to turn dark, and soon dull lights turned on inside the compartment. Harry felt another rush of excitement as he realised just how close they were to arriving.

He had lived at Hogwarts for as long as he could remember, but now, it was different. He would be, for the first time, seeing things from the perspective of a student. He was excited. He was nervous. But it felt good. Soon, he would be officially sorted.

And Harry really couldn't wait.

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 **A/N: Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2: The Sorting

**Disclaimer: I'm _fairly certain_ I'm not JK Rowling, then again, no one can really be too sure. **

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**Chapter 2: The Sorting**

Harry and Ron were ready. A voice echoed through the train, informing them that they would be arriving at Hogwarts in five minutes' time and to leave their luggage in their compartments as it would be taken up to the school separately. Ron, Harry saw, looked pale under his freckles. They took the last few sweets and crammed them into their pockets, before joining the excited crowd filling the corridor outside.

When the train slowed down and finally stopped, people began to push their way towards the doors. Harry could see the dark silhouettes of trees outside through the windows. He took a deep breath, and stepped out onto a tiny, dark platform. Harry knew that they must be in Hogsmeade, as he knew the station was situated somewhere in the village, but he had never been close to it before, and he wasn't sure exactly where he was, only that it would be a long walk up to the castle. It was cold, and the students shivered in the night air. Harry tried not to think about the suffocating darkness around him.

Less than a minute later, a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Harry heard a familiar voice calling 'Firs'-years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Harry?'

It was Hagrid, his big hairy face beaming at him over the sea of heads. Harry smiled and nodded slightly.

'C'mon, follow me- any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs'- years follow me!'

They followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path, slipping and stumbling as they went. It was so dark either side of them that Harry thought there must be thick trees there, and his stomach clenched. He didn't want to think about it, not now. . . Harry reminded himself that he was surrounded by people, including Ron, and Hagrid, and that it was impossible for anything to happen when he was in the midst of a crowd. Nobody spoke much, and only Neville's occasional sniffs from somewhere behind Harry broke the silence.

'Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec,' Hagrid called over his shoulder, 'jus' round this bend, here.'

There was a loud, collective 'Ohhhhh!'

The narrow path had opened suddenly on to the edge of the Black Lake, and perched atop a high cliff on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was Hogwarts.

'No more'n four to a boat!' Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry and Ron got into one of the boats and were closely followed by Neville and Hermione.

'Everyone in?' shouted Hagrid, who had a whole boat to himself. 'Right then- FORWARD!'

And they set off, gliding across the smooth, green surface of the lake. Everyone was silent, staring up in awe at the great castle overheard. Even Harry had his mouth open in wonder. Hogwarts had always been especially beautiful at night, and he'd never seen the castle from this angle before.

'Head's down!' yelled Hagrid. The first group of boats had reached the cliff. They all bent their heads, and the little boats carried them through a wet curtain of ivy, which hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They travelled along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a sort of underground harbour. They clambered out onto a shore of rocks and pebbles.

'Oi, you there! Is this your toad?' said Hagrid, who was checking the boats as people climbed out of them.

'Trevor!' cried Neville, and he held out his hands. Then they clambered up a passageway that had been carved into the rock, following Hagrid's lamp, and came out at last onto a patch of smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. They reached a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.

'Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?'

Hagrid raised a gigantic first and knocked three times on the castle doors, which swung open at once. A tall, black haired witch in emerald green robes stood there. It was Minerva.

'The firs' years, Professor McGonagall,' said Hagrid.

'Thank you, I will take them from here,' she said, pulling the door wide to let them all through. The Entrance Hall was as big and welcoming as ever. They followed Minerva across the flagged stone floor. Harry could hear hundreds of voices coming from the Great Hall. Harry expected to be led straight in, but instead he was surprised when Minerva led them into a small, empty chamber off the hall. They had all crowded in, and Minerva proceeded to tell them all about Hogwarts, how the sorting would work, and about the school houses. After informing them that it would take place in a few minutes and instructing them to smarten up a bit more, she left. Ron rubbed at a smudge of dirt on his nose, and Harry tried to flatten his hair, even though he knew it was useless.

'D'you know how they sort us into the houses?' Ron asked him. 'You know. . . 'cause you live here. Fred said it was some sort of test, and that it hurts a lot. That's not true, is it?'

Harry grinned. 'No, it's fine! It's just a hat.'

Ron looked extremely confused, but Harry only grinned further and refused to say anything else. Soon after they were interrupted as around 20 ghosts streamed through the back wall of the room, making most people- even Harry- jump a foot in the air. Several people behind him screamed. They were pearly white and slightly transparent, and they glided across the room as they talked to each other, hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing at something. Harry recognised The Fat Friar, who was saying 'Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance!'

Harry was very familiar with the ghosts, who always said hello to him when they spotted him wandering around the castle, especially Sir Nicholas. He was also all too familiar with Peeves, who he was sure the ghosts were talking about. Peeves had never targeted him specifically (picking on students was one thing, picking on a six-year-old was just not done, especially when said child was under the guardianship of Albus Dumbledore), so Harry held no grudges, and he'd always found a lot of Peeves' pranks quite funny. Once, when Harry was seven, the Poltergeist had managed to flood two of the corridors on the third floor and fill one of them with live, singing carp.

The ghosts seemed to have now noticed the children.

'New students!' said The Fat Friar, smiling around at them. 'About to be sorted, I suppose?'

A few people, including Harry, nodded.

'Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!' said the Friar. 'My old house, you know.'

'Move along now, follow me,' said a voice suddenly from the doorway. Minerva had returned. 'The Sorting Ceremony's about to start.'

Harry got into line behind a boy with sandy hair, with Ron behind him, and they walked out of the chamber, back across the Entrance Hall, and into the Great Hall.

Harry felt strange and slightly giddy as he walked down the middle of the rows of tables. He'd done it many times before, of course, but never like this, surrounded by his fellow first years and about to be sorted, with all eyes on him. It seemed so surreal. The teachers sat in front of them at the High table, and some of them gave Harry small smiles as he got closer. Every single year before that, Harry had sat with them, in between Minerva and Albus, watching from above as each year's group of students were sorted.

Once they reached the front, they turned around to face the rest of the student body, huddled together more closely than they ever would again. Harry looked up at the ceiling, trying to avoid thinking about the hundreds of faces staring up at him. It was dark, filled with stars and what looked to be the milky way. Next to him, he heard Hermione whisper 'It's bewitched to look like the sky outside, I've read about it in _Hogwarts: A History'._

Minerva placed a four-legged stool in front of them. On top of it, she put a pointed wizard's hat- the Sorting Hat. Harry waited, expecting it to start any second, and sure enough, the hat widened and a rip appeared near the brim, opening wide like a mouth. It began to sing:

 _'Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,_

 _But don't judge on what you see,_

 _I'll eat myself if you can find_

 _A smarter hat than me._

 _You can keep your bowlers black,_

 _Your top hats sleek and tall,_

 _For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

 _And I can cap them all!_

 _There's nothing hidden in your head_

 _The Sorting hat can't see,_

 _So try me on and I will tell you_

 _Where you ought to be._

 _You might belong in Gryffindor,_

 _Where dwell the brave at heart,_

 _Their daring, nerve and chivalry_

 _Set Gryffindors apart,_

 _You might belong in Hufflepuff,_

 _Where they are just and loyal,_

 _Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_

 _And unafraid of toil,_

 _Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,_

 _If you've a ready mind,_

 _Where those of wit and learning,_

 _Will always find their kind,_

 _Or perhaps in Slytherin_

 _You'll make your real friends,_

 _Those cunning folk use any means_

 _To achieve their ends_

 _So put me on! Don't be afraid!_

 _And don't get in a flap!_

 _You're in safe hands (though I have none)_

 _For I'm a Thinking Cap!'_

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song, Harry nearly joining in as he always had before he realised that none of the other first years were clapping. The hat bowed to each of the four tables and then became entirely still again.

'Thank Merlin,' said Ron. 'You were right! I'm going to _kill_ Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll!'

Minerva now stepped forwards, holding a long roll of parchment.

'When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted,' she said. 'Abbott, Hannah!'

A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat- which fell right over her eyes- and sat down. A moment's pause, and then the hat shouted 'HUFFLEPUFF!'

The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down with the Hufflepuffs. Harry saw the Fat Friar waving merrily at her.

One by one, the rest of the students began to get sorted. Susan Bones went to Hufflepuff, Terry Boot and Mandy Brocklehurst to Ravenclaw, Lavender Brown to Gryffindor, Millicent Bulstrode to Slytherin, Justin Finch-Fletchley to Hufflepuff, and Seamus Finnigan to Gryffindor. Hermione- who almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat on her head- was sorted into Gryffindor as well, and soon after Neville joined her, something which surprised Harry slightly. The shy boy hadn't seemed too brave when he'd come to their compartment. He watched Neville run off with the hat still on his head, before Malfoy, the nasty boy from the train, swaggered forwards to be sorted. It wasn't surprising that the second the Sorting Hat touched his head, it screamed 'SLYTHERIN!'

Malfoy's bodyguards, Crabbe and Goyle, clapped from their place at the Slytherin table. Harry wasn't really against the Slytherins, but it was true that most of the students in the upper years didn't like him, and although they'd never done anything to him before, nasty looks or sneers were occasionally directed at him in the corridors.

There weren't a lot of people left now. Moon, Nott, Parkinson, a pair of twin girls (Patil and Patil), Sally-Anne Perks, and then, at last-

'Potter, Harry!'

As Harry stepped forwards, several whispers broke out. Most of the student body knew him already, but there were still a few murmurs here and there amongst his fellow first years, who hadn't known he had been with them. Minerva gave him a small, encouraging smile, and Harry took a deep breath before sitting down awkwardly on the stool. The hat was placed gently on his head, and next second he was looking at the black canvas inside of the hat. He waited.

 _'Hmmm,'_ said a small voice in his ear. _'You're a difficult one, you are. Plenty of courage, I see. Oh yes. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, oh my goodness, yes. . . now that's interesting. So where shall I put you?'_

Harry gripped the edges of the stool. He had wanted to be a Gryffindor for as long as he could remember, and both Albus and Minerva had been Gryffindors. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw weren't too bad, but still. . . and if he was ever put in Slytherin house, well. . .

 _'Hmmm, yes,'_ said the small voice. ' _So it's Gryffindor you want, eh? You are courageous, no doubt about that. You have survived through what many never have and never will-'_ Harry shivered slightly at that, but tried to concentrate on the rest of what the hat was saying as it continued, ' _-but you could be great, in Slytherin. It's all here in your head. . . no? Well, if you're sure. . . better be_ GRYFFINDOR!'

Harry heard the hat shout the last word to the whole hall, and he was immediately filled with a sense of relief so immense he nearly fell off the stool. He took off the hat and walked shakily to the Gryffindor table. He was a Gryffindor! A _Gryffindor!_ He couldn't believe it. Harry was so happy and excited that he didn't notice he was getting the loudest cheer yet. An older boy got up and shook his hand vigorously, while two red-headed boys who could only be Ron's twin brothers (Harry was sure he had seen them around the school before) started chanting 'We got Potter! We got Potter!'

Embarrassed, Harry sat down opposite Sir Nicholas, who beamed at him and cried, 'Welcome to Gryffindor, Mr Potter!'

Harry looked up at the High Table. He caught Hagrid's eye, and Hagrid gave him the thumbs-up. And there, in the centre of the table, was Albus. He raised his golden goblet slightly at Harry, blue eyes twinkling, and Harry smiled.

The last few people were left to be sorted. Lisa Turpin became a Ravenclaw, and then it was Ron's turn. He was pale green by now. Harry crossed his fingers under the table and a second later the hat had shouted 'GRYFFINDOR!'

Harry clapped loudly with the rest of the students as Ron plonked down on the chair next to him.

'Well done, Ron, excellent,' said the older boy who had shaken Harry's hand as Blaise Zabini was sorted into Slytherin. He had to be one of Ron's older brothers. Harry noticed a shining Prefect's badge on his chest, and remembered what Ron had told him earlier. _Ah, Percy then._ Harry looked down at his empty gold plate, realising suddenly how hungry he was. The Chocolate Frogs seemed ages ago.

Albus had got to his feet. He was beaming at the students, arms open wide.

'Welcome,' he said. 'Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank-you!'

He sat back down, and everybody clapped and cheered. Harry rolled his eyes.

'Is he. . . always like this?' asked Ron hesitantly.

'Yes,' said Harry happily, and he smiled widely when the plates and platters in front of them filled with food; roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, chips, yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and for some strange reason, mint humbugs. Harry filled his plate with a bit of everything, minus the humbugs, and began to eat. Somehow the food was even more delicious than all of the other feasts he had had.

'That does look good,' said Sir Nicholas sadly, watching as Harry cut up his steak.

'Sorry Nick,' said Harry sympathetically. He knew ghosts weren't able to eat.

'Yes, well, I suppose one gets used to it,' said the ghost. 'I haven't eaten in nearly five hundred years!' he paused, turning towards the other first years. 'I don't think I've introduced myself. Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower.'

'I know who you are!' said Ron suddenly. 'My brothers told me about you- you're Nearly Headless Nick!'

'I would _prefer_ you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-' Sir Nicholas began stiffly, but Seamus Finnigan interrupted.

'Nearly headless? How can you be _nearly_ headless?'

Sir Nicholas looked quite annoyed, but nevertheless, he still seized his left ear and pulled, causing his head to swing off his neck and fall on his shoulders as if it was on a hinge. Harry had never seen this happen before and winced. It was quite disgusting, especially close-up. Looking pleased at the stunned looks on their faces, Nearly Headless Nick flipped his head back onto his neck, coughed, and said, 'So- new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the House Championship this year? Gryffindor have never gone so long without winning. Slytherin have got the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable- he's the Slytherin ghost.'

Harry hadn't really interacted with the Bloody Baron before, but he did know to stay away from the gloomy, slightly scary looking ghost, who now sat at the table near them, right next to Malfoy (Harry was glad to see the other boy didn't seem too pleased with the seating arrangements).

After a bit, the dishes around them were replaced by dessert- blocks of ice-cream in every flavour, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs, jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries and other fruits, jelly, rice pudding. . . As Harry helped himself to a slice of treacle tart, the talk turned to their families.

'I'm half and half,' said Seamus. 'Me dad's a Muggle. Mam didn't tell him she was a witch 'till after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him.'

The others laughed.

'What about you, Neville?' asked Ron.

'Well, my gran brought me up and she's a witch,' said Neville. He told them all about how his family didn't think he was magical, and the time his Great Uncle Algie had hung him out of an upstairs window by the ankles, accidentally let go, and how Neville had managed to bounce all the way down the garden and onto the road instead of falling to his death.

The Feast ended soon after that, once Albus had given them the usual start-of-term notices and they'd all sung the school song. The First Years followed Percy through the castle until they reached Gryffindor Tower, only stopping when Peeves appeared and dropped a bundle of walking sticks on poor Neville's head. They entered Gryffindor Common Room through a portrait hole, which was hidden behind a painting of a plump, friendly looking lady. Harry had just enough time to look around and take in a roaring fireplace, several red and gold armchairs and couches, and a thick, dark red carpet in the middle of the floor, before they were directed up some narrow, spiralling stairs that led them up to their new dormitories. Their trunks and other belongings had been placed at the foot of each four-poster bed. Harry's was next to the window. There were three other boys sharing the dormitory with him and Ron; Seamus Finnigan, Dean Thomas, and Neville. They were all too tired and full to talk to each other, so they changed into their pyjamas in silence and got into their respective beds. Harry tried to stay awake, going over everything that had happened that day, but eventually his eyes started to droop, his brain seemed to slow down, and soon he had fallen fast asleep.

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 **A/N: Please review, feedback is much appreciated :)**


	3. Chapter 3: Classes

**Disclaimer: I promise I'm not JK Rowling**

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 **Chapter Three: Classes**

The first weeks of classes at Hogwarts flew by faster than Harry could have ever imagined. In the morning after the Sorting Harry had returned from having breakfast in the Great Hall with Ron to find Seamus, Dean and Neville waiting for him in the Common Room, standing next to the fireplace.

'Hey, Harry,' Dean had said, sounding nervous as he shuffled his feet. 'We were wondering if you knew how to get to the Charms classroom. And if you could. . . maybe show us where it is? We have it first now.'

'Umm. . . yeah, sure,' said Harry, surprised but slightly pleased. And so it had begun. Harry led his roommates to every class, ensuring that they never got lost or encountered anything nasty in the corridors (namely one of Peeves' pranks) and that they arrived on time for every lesson. Soon enough the rest of the First-Year Gryffindors had caught on and joined the small group, all except for Hermione Granger- who seemed to like doing things by herself.

There were a lot of things Harry loved about Hogwarts, but classes had to be his favourite. Although Albus and Minerva had set work for him to do when he was younger, he had never actually gone to a school like most children his age did in the Muggle world. It was an entirely new experience for him, even if he had lived in one for most of his life.

They had Astronomy lessons every Wednesday at midnight, when they'd study the night sky through their telescopes and learn the names of different stars and constellations and the movement of planets. Three times a week they would trample down the grassy slopes to the Greenhouses located behind the castle to do Herbology with Professor Sprout, who taught them how to care for and use all the strange magical plants and fungi that existed. Harry noticed that Neville seemed to enjoy this class most of all, and always seemed to have the answers to everything Professor Sprout asked, something which irked Hermione slightly (the First-Years had soon realised that Hermione _loved_ to be the best in class, and although she tried not to show it, got slightly upset when a teacher didn't call on her for an answer). History of Magic was held three times a week as well, though Harry really wished it was less. It was easily the most boring lesson to have ever existed in all of the history they were being taught. Harry had heard stories from the older students about the class, but he had never imagined how awful it actually was. Everyone soon knew the story of Professor Binns, and how he had died after falling asleep in front of the Staff Room fire. It should have been interesting to be taught by a ghost, but all Professor Binns did was drone on and one while they tried to scribble down names and dates without falling asleep. Charms, which had been their first ever lesson, was soon the opposite of History, and one of everyone's favourite classes. Professor Flitwick was as cheery and kind as ever, and even though they had started off learning boring theory, they would soon be moving on to the highly-anticipated practical stuff.

Transfiguration was just as Harry had imagined it to be. It took all of his self-control not to laugh when Minerva began to lecture them on their first day, but she still sent him several stern looks during the lesson, as if she knew exactly what was going through his mind. And she probably did. Professor Flitwick had always been Professor Flitwick, and Professor Sprout had always been Professor Sprout. But calling Aunt Minerva 'Professor McGonagall' was as weird as things could get for Harry, despite her having been a teacher for his entire life, and he found himself messing up in the first few lessons to the great amusement of his classmates.

Ron seemed constantly amazed that the strict woman who taught their classes had actually _raised_ Harry, probably the most normal and non-strict person he had ever met.

'I mean, she gave you _baths!'_ He exclaimed one day as they were making their way through a long essay on Transfiguring objects with the same properties. 'She _fed_ you, and changed your _nappy!'_

'Jee, thanks for that, Ron!' Harry shook his head, but he was smiling.

Their first Potions lesson was on the Friday of the first week. Harry hadn't been looking forward to it at all, mainly because of Professor Snape. He had avoided the man as much as he could for the past few years, and now he was going to have to see him nearly every day of the week. Harry didn't know what he would do if Snape ever tried to _talk_ to him.

Snape had been there when Harry had been kidnapped by Voldemort two years previously, had seen what they'd done, had _done_ things himself. Harry remembered it all. He knew, now, that the man wasn't evil, that he had had no choice, but every time Harry looked at Severus Snape's face he would picture the Death Eaters in their dark, hooded robes, and memories of what had happened would immediately be pushed to the forefront of his mind.

Luckily, Harry soon realised that Snape didn't want to talk to him as much as he didn't want to talk to Snape. The man completely ignored Harry the second he stepped through the dungeon doors. Instead, he questioned Neville extensively, sneering when the poor boy was unable to answer, before instructing them to begin making a simple cure for boils as he paced the front of the room, criticising everyone (though still ignoring Harry, and by extension Ron- who was his work partner) except for Malfoy. Snape was just showing everyone the perfect way Malfoy had stewed his horned slugs when clouds of acid green smoke and a loud hissing noise filled the room. Neville had somehow managed to melt Seamus' cauldron into a twisted blob and their potion was seeping across the stone floor, burning holes in people's shoes. The class clambered up onto their stools while Neville, who had been drenched in the potion, moaned as angry red boils sprang up all over his arms and legs.

'Idiot boy!' snarled Snape, and Harry winced slightly. 'I suppose you added the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the fire?'

Neville sniffed as more boils started to appear on his nose, and Snape turned his head to where Ron and Harry were standing. For a second he and Harry's eyes met, and Harry stood still, unblinking. Then Snape was looking away, and ordering Ron to take Neville up to the Hospital Wing.

' _I don't know where it is!_ ' Ron whispered frantically, once Snape had turned his back on them.

'I'll come with you,' muttered Harry quickly. He knew Snape wouldn't try to stop him if he left the classroom, and it was nearly the end of the lesson anyway, with lunch being next. He grabbed his things and followed Neville and Ron out of the room, trying to ignore the whispers from his classmates. He led the other two boys up through the castle, the three of them not really saying much until they reached the Hospital Wing.

The Wing was a place of bad memories for Harry, as it was where he had spent several weeks recovering after his kidnapping. His memories of the aftermath were hazy, but he remembered enough for him to feel uncomfortable as they walked in. He wondered fleetingly if it would have been better for him to stay in the classroom, then shook his head. No. Anything was better than being around Snape.

None of the beds were occupied, and Madam Pomfrey was alone. She greeted them with a smile, and Harry avoided her eyes before she began fussing over Neville, whose boils looked to be quite painful and were getting larger and redder by the minute.

'There you go, dear,' said Madam Pomfrey after a few minutes, as she handed Neville a small jar of cream. 'Just rub this on them tonight before bed, and they should be fully gone by morning.' Ron and Harry made to leave, but Madam Pomfrey reached out and took Harry's arm gently, much to his discomfort.

'How have you been doing, Harry?' she said quietly. It had been over a year since Harry had last come to see her, though he knew Albus and Minerva probably kept her informed on everything significant that happened to him. Harry tried not to frown at the thought. Neville and Ron were staring at him curiously.

'Fine,' said Harry, mouth dry. And it was true. He _wa_ s fine, really. He wasn't weak anymore. He could handle things now. Everything was perfectly fine. 'It's good. Classes are good. Everything's good.'

'I'm glad,' said Poppy, patting him on the shoulder. 'Take care now. I hope I don't see you back here too soon, Mr Potter.'

Harry nodded awkwardly, glad that she wasn't going to ask him any more questions, and hurried out of the wing with Neville and Ron.

'What was that, mate?' asked Ron, smiling slightly as the three of them made their way to the Great Hall for lunch. '

'Um,' said Harry, scrambling to organise his thoughts. 'Um, she knows me, you know-'

''Cause you grew up here, yeah, I keep forgetting!' said Ron, as Neville nodded vigorously and said 'yeah, Harry, it's awesome!'

The talk changed to Ron's life at The Burrow- the name of his home- and Harry breathed a sigh of relief that the conversation hadn't steered into more dangerous waters, such as injuries they had suffered when they were younger or something like that. Harry didn't think he would've been able to keep a straight face.

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 **A/N: Please review, I really appreciate 'em :)**

 **Just so you know, not a lot is going to happen in Harry's First and Second Years, so I'm going to be moving through them quite quickly (a bunch of chapters each). But things are scheduled to kick off in Year Three!**

 **If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask :D**

 **More on Voldemort: Voldemort has not made a move since kidnapping Harry, and has stayed silent and in hidden away at an unknown location. Dumbledore and some members of the Order of the Phoenix tried looking for him, and are still doing so, but to no avail. The top people in the Ministry are aware of his return, but refuse to say anything. The Death Eaters are in hiding with Voldemort. There were a few small attacks on Muggle towns in the two years (by Death Eaters) that Dumbledore investigated, but the Ministry brushed them off as random attacks. The Wizarding World remains blissfully oblivious. Sirius is still in Azkaban as well- Voldemort did not remove all of his Death Eaters from Azkaban before he took Harry, only the ones most important to him (and of course, there were many that were still free)- so sadly, it still looks like Sirius is on his side.**


	4. Chapter 4: Malfoy

**Disclaimer: JK Rowling is not me, and I am not JK Rowling. Anything you recognise is obviously taken from HP and the Philosopher's Stone.**

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 **Chapter 4: Malfoy**

If there was one bad thing about Hogwarts, other than Professor Snape, Harry had to admit that it was Draco Malfoy. He had managed to more or less avoid the other boy since their confrontation on the Hogwarts Express, but every time he saw Malfoy in the Great Hall, or in the corridors, or in Potions. . . well. . . Harry disliked him more than he'd ever disliked someone of his age before.

Flying lessons had been something Harry had been looking forward to for several weeks. Although he already knew how to fly- and excellently at that- he hadn't been on a broomstick in ages, and he had been highly anticipating the day they were due to start, though he understood that they would probably only be doing basic beginner stuff. His elation was cut short, however, when he and Ron spotted a notice pinned up in the Gryffindor Common Room. The lessons would be starting on Thursday- still several days away- but Gryffindor and Slytherin would be learning together.

' _Of course_ we have to learn with Malfoy,' said Harry bitterly. 'I should've known.'

'Cheer up,' said Ron, though he hated Malfoy as much as Harry. 'At least you already know how to fly, it's not like he'll be able to make fun of us or anything. Unlike Neville. . .' Ron glanced at the other boy, who was looking pale and sweaty as he read through the notice. Neville had never been on a broomstick in his life, because his grandmother had never allowed him anywhere near one (Harry privately felt she'd had good reason, because Neville managed to have an extraordinary number of accidents even on the ground). He was one of the only ones, though. Everybody except for the muggle-born students had tried flying at least once, and some children, like Seamus, had spent most of their childhood zooming around the countryside on their broomsticks. Harry and Ron, of course, being two of them.

Seeming almost as nervous as Neville was Hermione Granger, who seemed to have been thrust into a whole new other world which she couldn't navigate using books and knowledge. Not that it stopped her from trying. When Thursday rolled around, she spent all morning at breakfast boring them all with flying tips she'd gotten out of _Quidditch Through the Ages_ , with Neville the only one really listening as everybody else tried to drown her out. Hermione was nice, Harry thought (though he hadn't really spoken to her much since the train) but she could be really annoying when she wanted to, especially when it was anything to do with learning.

And seeing as they were in a school, most things were.

Luckily for all of them, Hermione's tirade was interrupted by the arrival of the post and a barn owl bringing Neville a small package from his grandmother. After opening it excitedly, he showed them all a glass orb the size of a small tennis ball, which seemed to be full of white smoke, and turned out to be-

'A Remembrall!' said Neville excitedly. 'Gran knows I forget things- and this tells you if there's something you've forgotten to do. Look, you hold it tight like this and if it turns red you've- oh. . .' his face fell, because the Remembrall had suddenly glowed bright red. '. . . you've forgotten something.'

Neville was trying to recall what exactly it was that he had forgotten when Draco Malfoy, who was passing by the Gryffindor table, snatched the Remembrall out of his hand.

Harry shot to his feet before he had even registered what he was doing, and saw Ron do the same beside him. But Minerva, who could spot trouble quicker than any teacher in the school (rather unfortunately for a young Harry) was there in a flash.

'What's going on?'

She gazed sternly at all of them.

'N-nothing!' said Harry, gratefully. 'Min- Professor, Malfoy took Neville's Remembrall!'

Scowling, and knowing that the game was up, Malfoy quickly dropped the ball back on the table.

'Just looking,' he said, and slouched off with Crabbe and Goyle, who Harry hadn't even realised had been behind him.

Minerva frowned slightly. 'I hope you're not getting into any fights, Harry,'

'I'm _not_ ,' said Harry defensively. 'Malfoy just doesn't like me. He doesn't like any of us.'

'Very well,' Minerva sighed. 'But... try your best to avoid a confrontation.'

Harry nodded.

* * *

At three-thirty that afternoon, Harry, Ron and the other Gryffindors hurried down the front steps into the grounds for their first flying lesson. It was a clear, breezy day and the grass rippled under their feet as they strolled down the sloping lawns towards a smooth area of grass on the opposite side of the grounds to the Forbidden Forest (which Harry was more than happy to stay away from forever). The Slytherins were already there, and so were twenty broomsticks lying in neat lines on the ground. Their teacher, Madam Hooch, arrived a few minutes later. She had short grey hair and yellow eyes like a hawk. Harry hadn't interacted with her much before, but he knew that although she often sounded snappy and serious, she was also a very nice person.

'Well, what are you all waiting for?' she barked. 'Everyone stand by a broomstick. Come on, now, hurry up.'

Harry glanced down at his broom. Like most school brooms, it was old and some of the twigs stuck out at odd angles. The brooms were often unpredictable and many of them were damaged, but Harry had been riding them for most of his life, and so he had managed to get the hang of riding them well.

'Stick out your right hand over your broom,' called Madam Hooch from the front, 'and say, "Up!"'

'UP' everyone shouted.

As expected, Harry's broom jumped into his hand at once, but it was one of the few that did. Hermione's had simply rolled over on the ground and Neville's hadn't moved at all. Madam Hooch then showed them how to mount their brooms without sliding off the end, and walked up and down the rows, correcting their grips. Harry and Ron were delighted when she told Malfoy he'd been doing it wrong for years, as Malfoy had been boasting about his flying skills ever since the students had known they would be having lessons.

'Now, when I blow my whistle, you will kick off from the ground, hard,' said Madam Hooch. 'Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forwards slightly. On my whistle! Three- two-'

But Neville, nervous and jumpy and frightened of being left on the ground, pushed off hard before Madam Hooch was able to finish.

'Come back, boy!' she shouted, but Neville continued to rise. Twelve feet. . . twenty feet. . . Harry saw his scared white face look down at the ground falling away, saw him gasp, slip sideways off the broom and-

'No!'

 _WHAM!_

A thud and a nasty crack and Neville lay face down on the grass in a heap. His broomstick, which was still rising higher and higher, started to drift lazily towards the Forbidden Forest. Madam Hooch bent over Neville, her face as white as his.

'Broken wrist,' Harry heard her mutter, and he sighed in relief. 'Come on, boy- it's all right, up you get.'

She turned to the rest of the class.

'None of you are to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are or you'll be out of Hogwarts before you can say "Quidditch!". Come on, dear.'

Neville, his face tear-streaked, hobbled off with Madam Hooch, who had her arm around him. No sooner were they out of earshot than Malfoy burst into laughter.

'Did you see his face, the great lump?'

The other Slytherins joined in.

'Shut up, Malfoy,' snapped Parvati Patil.

'Oohh, sticking up for Longbottom, are you?' said Pansy Parkinson, a hard-faced Slytherin girl. 'Never thought you'd like fat little crybabies, Parvati.'

'Look!' said Malfoy triumphantly, darting forwards and snatching something out of the grass. 'It's that stupid thing Longbottom's gran sent him.'

The Remembrall glittered in the sun as he held it up.

'Give that here, Malfoy,' said Harry quietly. 'It's not yours!'

Everyone stopped talking to watch, and Malfoy smiled nastily.

'No. I think I'll leave it somewhere for Longbottom to collect. How about. . . up a tree?'

Harry felt a rush of anger. 'Give it here!' he yelled, but Malfoy had leapt onto his broomstick and taken off. Hovering level with the topmost branches of an oak, he called, 'Come and get it, Potter!'

Furious, Harry grabbed his broom.

'No!' shouted Hermione. 'Madam Hooch told us not to move- you'll get us all into trouble.'

But Harry ignored her. Blood was pounding in his ears. He mounted the broom and kicked hard against the ground, shooting up into the air. Malfoy scowled- having not actually expected Harry to join him.

'Give it here!' Harry called again.

'Why should I?' Malfoy sneered.

'I'll- I'll knock you off if you don't!' said Harry. He didn't really mean it, but Malfoy didn't seem to have noticed his hesitation, and worry flashed across his features.

'Catch it if you can, then!' he shouted suddenly, and threw the glass ball high into the air before streaking back towards the ground. Harry saw, as though in slow motion, the ball rise up in the air and then start to fall. He leant forward and pointed his broom handle down- next second he was gathering speed in a steep dive, racing the ball. The wind whistled in his ears, mingled with the screams of people watching. This was more dangerous than any dive he had ever attempted, but he knew he could do it. He stretched out his hand, knowing exactly what to do, and caught the ball a mere foot from the ground, just in time to pull his broom straight. He landed gently on the grass with the Remembrall clutched safely in his first.

'HARRY JAMES POTTER!'

Harry froze. Minerva was running across the grass towards them. He turned to face her shakily.

'Never- in all my time at Hogwarts-'

She sounded almost speechless with shock, and her glasses flashed furiously. 'Mr Potter, follow me, _now.'_

Harry caught sight of Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle's triumphant faces as he left, walking as quickly as he could behind Minerva as she strode towards the castle. She led him up the marble staircase, across the Entrance Hall, and then entered an empty Charms classroom off to the side.

'I'm disappointed, Harry.'

Harry swallowed, his heart sinking. 'Sorry-'

'You risked your _life_ , Harry! It's only the second week of classes, and already you are breaking the rules.'

'I know how to fly!' Harry cried. 'You know I do!'

'That doesn't change anything!' hissed Minerva. 'That was a dangerous thing to do. And your classmates- you were encouraging them! No- don't look at me like that- what if they'd tried to follow you? We taught you to be better than this, Harry.'

Harry's face had grown hot, and he stared down at the ground, humiliated. 'It wasn't my fault,' he whispered. 'It was Malfoy. He- he won't stop! He's so mean, and rude, and it was Neville's Remembrall! I couldn't let him break it! I couldn't just let it happen!'

Minerva was silent for several moments. Then she placed a hand gently on Harry's shoulder.

'It still does not excuse your behaviour,' she said quietly. 'I will refrain from docking points this time, but I will not catch you doing this again.'

Harry nodded quickly. 'I promise I won't do anything. But Malfoy-'

'Try your best ignore him,' said Minerva. 'He just wants to rile you up- and you know this.'

'Yeah. . .'

Minerva sighed. They were silent again for a few minutes before Harry spoke up.

'He reminds me of someone,' he said hesitantly. 'Malfoy, that is. Have I. . . have I seen him before, when I was younger? Do you know why?'

Minerva stared at him. 'No. . . I don't think so. I don't know why you would think he looks familiar. Unless-'

She cut off, suddenly turning rather pale. A normal student might not have noticed, but Harry had known Minerva for ten years, and could read her face rather well, just as she could read his.

'What?' said Harry quickly. 'What is it?'

'Nothing,' she shook her head. 'I just- I thought of something. It doesn't matter. No, Harry, I really don't know.'

Harry narrowed his eyes. 'Are you-'

'I'm sure.'

Harry hesitated, then nodded. 'Okay then. Okay.' He started heading towards the door.

'Wait, Harry-'

He turned back around, and Minerva gave him a faint smile.

'How have your first weeks been, so far?'

Harry was startled, but he supposed he should've expected the question. He hadn't really had any time to talk to Minerva or Albus since school had started, as he had been so busy doing work and making friends. 'It's been good,' he told her. 'Everything's nice, except for Potions.'

Minerva nodded. 'Ah. Yes. I thought that might be an issue. I'm sorry about Professor Snape-'

'I don't want to talk about him,' interrupted Harry.

'Harry-'

'No. I don't want to.' Harry scowled. When had this conversation changed from a lecture to a talk about his feelings? 'It's fine. I just ignore him, and he ignores me.'

Minerva followed him to the door. 'Yes, well, I suppose that is for the best.'

Harry stayed silent, and they talked no more until they reached the Great Hall and Minerva bade him farewell. Harry headed to the Gryffindor table as quickly as he could, finding Ron almost immediately, and seconds later was sitting down next to his friend.

'Harry!' cried Ron, shocked, nearly dropping his fork. 'Blimey, they haven't expelled you!?'

'What?' said Harry, momentarily confused as he hurriedly served himself some dinner. 'Oh- oh, no! Of course not! Minerva- I mean _Professor McGonagall_ \- just told me to ignore Malfoy and to stay out of trouble.'

'Thank Merlin!' said Seamus, who was sitting across from them and had obviously been listening. Now that Harry noticed, it seemed like everybody around him was staring at him intently. The news must have spread to the other years as well.

'Harry!' said Fred- or was it George?- leaning towards him. 'That is _some_ catch people are telling us about! Dived from nearly 20 feet, they're saying. Caught the ball inches from the ground!'

'Um, err, yeah,' said Harry, embarrassed. 'That was. . . that's what happened.'

There was a loud, collective 'ohhhhhh' all around him.

'I wish you could join the Gryffindor Quidditch team,' lamented a pretty dark girl several seats away whom Harry had never seen before. 'We're short on a seeker right now- you'd be really great, if what you did is true!'

There were a few murmurs of assent.

'Yeah, well, I won't be able to until second year,' said Harry awkwardly. 'But I'll try to join then, if I can.'

'Excellent!' said the other Weasley twin. 'We'll hold you to that, Harry!'

And that was the end of the conversation. People turned back to their friends and their food, and Harry gratefully shovelled a spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth. He was just getting started on his steak a few minutes later when he sensed somebody coming up behind him.

It was Malfoy, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.

'You again?' exclaimed Ron. 'Get lost, will you?'

Malfoy pointedly ignored him. 'Having a last meal, Potter?'

Harry took a deep breath. 'No,' he said evenly. 'Why would I be?'

'Oh _of course_ ,' sneered Malfoy. 'You're not getting expelled, are you? I should've known! _Famous_ Potter! Teacher's _favourite_! They'd _never_ expel you.'

'Just leave,' said Harry. 'I don't care what you have to say, Malfoy. Just stop bothering us.'

Malfoy's eyes flashed angrily, and he laughed humorlessly. 'Oh yeah? Just watch me. You may have won earlier today, but I could beat you any time on the ground.'

'What are you saying?' growled Ron.

'I'm _saying_ , Weasley, that I propose a duel. Tonight, at midnight, next to the Trophy Room- it's always unlocked. Wands only, no contact. That is, if you think you can stand losing, Potter.'

Ron opened his mouth to speak again, but Harry cut him off.

'No! No way.'

'What?' Malfoy had obviously expected him to agree immediately.

'I'm not stupid,' said Harry through gritted teeth. 'We agree, and then what? We show up and you're not there. You just want us to get into trouble.'

'Yeah,' said Ron quickly, catching on. 'Want us to get caught by Filch, do you? Coward.'

Malfoy looked furious, but there was nothing he could do except stare daggers at them.

'You'll pay, Potter!' he growled. 'You and _Weasley_. I warned you on the train- you'll just go the same way as your filthy parents did!'

Harry seethed, but he remembered what Minerva had told him minutes previously, and stayed in his seat. Ron, however, could hold it in no longer.

'SHUT UP!' he yelled, then lunged for Malfoy. But before he could so much as touch him, Snape had arrived, so fast it took Harry a few seconds to register what had happened. He pulled Ron off a stunned Malfoy and threw him aside.

'He- he tried to kill me,' stammered Malfoy, picking himself up from the floor. 'He's mad! When my father hears about this-'

'Weasley!' Snape hissed. '30 points from Gryffindor for assaulting a fellow student, and detention for the next two weeks.'

'What!?' cried Ron. 'He's lying, that stinking-'

'A month.' Snape's voice was deathly. Harry was furious on Ron's behalf, but he continued to stay in his seat, not saying a word and avoiding Snape's gaze. Ron's mouth opened and closed angrily, not unlike Trevor the toad's, but it seemed he was at lost for words. He sat down.

'Good,' said Snape. 'And if I see any more fighting from _you,_ Weasley, I will personally make sure you are expelled. Come along, Mr Malfoy.'

And they left.

Ron was shaking with rage, his food forgotten. And truth be told, Harry didn't really feel like eating either. He pushed his plate aside.

'I hate them. . . both Snape and Malfoy. . . I hate them. . .' growled Ron. 'One day. . .'

'Yeah,' said Harry quietly. He couldn't agree more.

* * *

A/N: Please review :)


	5. Chapter 5: Hallowe'en

**A/N: Oh my gosh, I can't believe it's been almost six months since I last updated this story. I simply lacked much inspiration after the last chapter, even though I already have the rest of the series/chapters planned out, and this one was being a real struggle to write, so I just gave it up for a bit. Until today. Really, really sorry about that, and I promise I'll try not to let it happen again! And don't worry, this story will NEVER be abandoned, no matter how long it takes me to update.**

 **Disclaimer: I am not J.K Rowling**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Hallowe'en**

The next month passed by in a whirlwind of classes, friends and magic. Despite Ron's daily detentions with Snape, he and Harry continued to grow closer as friends. Harry's spare afternoons and weekends were spent playing games of gobstones with his dormmates and challenging Ron to weekly games of chess, despite knowing he would lose every time. Classes were all going well, and Harry was finally getting used to being called 'Mr Potter' by the teachers who had always called him Harry before he had started school, which was all of them except for Professor Pryus, who was teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts this year. The previous year's professor had retired after coming down with a particularly nasty case of Dragon Pox during the end-of-year exams.

With everything going on, Harry was well and truly shocked when he realised Hallowe'en was just days away.

Hallowe'en had always been Harry's least favourite holiday. Bad things always seemed to happen on the 31st of October each year, and if nothing bad happened, nothing good did either. When Harry had been six, Peeves had locked everybody up in the Great Hall during the feast and managed to barricade the doors in such a way that it took nearly half an hour of spellcasting from the adults to open them again. When Harry had been eight, Minerva had spent most of Hallowe'en away from the castle because one of her childhood friends had fallen deathly ill and had been sent to St Mungo's. And of course, it had been on Hallowe'en night in 1981 that Voldemort had murdered Harry's parents and tried to kill him.

So it was a rather glum Harry that followed Ron down to the dungeons for Potions on Hallowe'en afternoon. He hadn't been having a good day, which was not surprising. He had accidentally put his robes on inside out and hadn't realised until midway through breakfast, he had felt rather sick during lunch and had hardly been able to eat anything, and Professor Flitwick had given them a foot long essay to complete by Friday (it was a Thursday)!

Ron seemed to notice his mood, but didn't say anything about it and tried to act as cheerful as ever, though his optimism was quickly snuffed out when they entered the Potions classroom. Snape immediately had them working on a very complicated drought with over fifteen different ingredients (four of which they had never used before) and a total of seven stirring changes.

Twenty minutes into the lesson, as Harry was struggling to squash his bouncing bulbs while Ron attempted to stir their pale-yellow potion beside him, he heard Hermione speak up beside him. She was working with Neville, as she usually did, but now she had turned to speak to Draco Malfoy, who had unfortunately ended up at the desk next to hers.

'Here,' Hermione was saying. Harry was shocked she would even _try_ to help Malfoy, considering his attitude towards all Gryffindors and especially those not deemed to be of proper blood. He and Ron both paused their work momentarily to watch.

'You're cutting the salamanders all wrong! If you don't cut them right, you won't be able to use their blood properly for the potion and it might-'

'Don't you dare touch my ingredients!' spat Malfoy. 'I didn't ask for your help, Granger!' He shot her a disgusted look.

Hermione looked hurt, but she continued to push. 'If I could just show-'

'No, you-' Angrily, Malfoy threw his badly chopped salamanders into his cauldron and sneered. 'See? Nothing is-'

 _BANG!_

Harry and Ron leaped backwards as Malfoy's cauldron exploded. The yellow liquid shot out everywhere, hitting Hermione square in the face whilst just managing to miss Malfoy. Her face immediately began to turn red and bright purple pimples broke out along her forehead. Snape advanced towards them, furious, and proceeded to dock 30 points from Hermione, who looked to be on the verge of tears, before sending her straight to the hospital wing with Neville. The two left the classroom in silence, Hermione more humiliated than she had ever felt and Neville looking more miserable than ever. Even though he had played no part in Malfoy and Hermione's argument, his chest had been almost as badly covered in yellow potion as Hermione's face. Harry caught sight of Malfoy sneering at their backs as they exited the room.

The rest of the afternoon passed by in a whirlwind of their final two classes and the excited chattering of Harry's classmates as they looked forward to the Hallowe'en feast. Neville reappeared just before they were about to head down to the feast, as well as ever, but Hermione was not with him. Harry and Ron made their way slowly towards the Great Hall, Harry shuffling his feet as they went. He really didn't feel like going to the feast. Not this year. He did not know why, but he seemed to be feeling worse than he usually did on Hallowe'en nights. He had only missed the feast three times that he could remember, and on those days he and Albus had simply had a quiet dinner upstairs as Minerva stayed with the rest of the school.

Suddenly, Harry realised he wanted to be with Albus more than anything. He had only seen him a few times since term had begun, and they had all been brief. He began to slow down, until he and Ron were almost crawling through the corridors.

'. . . Harry?' Ron asked, when they actually did stop. 'C'mon, mate, we're going to be late!'

'I-' Harry began, nervous. 'I don't know, Ron. I don't know if I want to go.'

'What?' Ron gasped. 'But it's the Hallowe'en feast! Oh, I know you've been before, but it's different every year, isn't it? And just think of the _food_!'

'Yeah. . .' Harry took a deep breath. Now that he thought about it, it wasn't really fair for him to let Ron go alone. They were friends, right? And friends had to support each other. 'Okay, you're right. Let's go!'

They had only made it two corridors down when they suddenly heard a small scream of fright coming from a little way to their left.

'What was that?' exclaimed Ron, stopping abruptly. A scream sounded again, and this time, both he and Harry recognized the voice.

'Hermione!'

They ran. Where, Harry did not know, but he seemed to be the one leading Ron. After half a minute of running they rounded a sharp corner and immediately came skidding to a halt.

Oh no.

Hermione was there, pressed against the wall of the corridor, and surrounding her was Draco Malfoy and his two bodyguards- Crabbe and Goyle.

'STOP!' Harry yelled when he saw Hermione trembling against the wall, trapped. He sprinted towards the group, Ron close behind him.

'Leave her alone, Malfoy!' Ron cried, lunging towards the pale boy. Malfoy dodged, and Ron went flying into the ground. He landed with a heavy thud and a large grunt.

Malfoy burst into hysterical laughter. 'Stupid Weasley! And Potter, come to save the day once again!'

'What are you doing, Malfoy?' Harry growled. 'Leave Hermione alone!' He drew his wand, though he had not yet learnt any spells he could possibly use in a situation like this. Harry usually avoided any confrontations, as he absolutely hated fights. But seeing Hermione trembling against the wall as Malfoy and his cronies stood over her had made something snap inside of him.

He needn't have worried about using any spells, though. Malfoy's already pale complexion went even whiter when he saw the wand pointed at him, and he muttered a low ' _You'll get yours, Potter!_ ' before he, Crabbe and Goyle made a hasty retreat.

'Are you okay?' asked Harry, as Ron stood up and stretched out a hand towards Hermione. She took it after a slight moment of hesitation, and Ron pulled her up quickly.

'Yeah. . .' she said in a small voice. 'I'm fine. . . Harry. And thanks. . . Ron.'

'No problem,' said Ron.

'Uh huh,' agreed Harry.

The three of them stared at each other for a few short moments, and then-

Hermione threw herself into them, sobbing uncontrollably.

'I c-can't d-do this an-anymore! M-Malfoy h-hasn't l-left me a-alone since the s-start of the y-year!' she cried. 'I th-thought things would be d-different h-here, th-that I'd h-have some f-friends, that I w-wouldn't b-be such a- a-' Hermione's voice faltered slightly, before continuing again. 'B-but I was w-wrong!'

Harry didn't know what to do. He had never had somebody cry in front of him like this. Awkwardly, he patted Hermione's back in an effort to comfort her.

'You're _not_ wrong!' Ron suddenly burst out. 'Malfoy's just a prat! We're not all like this! We'll be your friends, Hermione, and we won't let him do anything again!'

Hermione untangled herself from the boys at those words, stunned. Harry himself was shocked and surprised, but he smiled at Hermione and nodded.

'Yeah, we'll be your friends.'

Hermione looked to be at loss for words. She opened and closed her mouth several times like a fish, before she managed to muster up enough courage to quietly say.

'I, I'd like that. . .'

And that was that.

Hallowe'en really wasn't so bad after all, thought Harry as he, Ron and Hermione sat down together at the feast, just in time for it to start. Especially if you had some friends to share it with.

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 **A/N: Please review :)**


	6. Chapter 6: Christmas

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine**

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 **Chapter 6: Christmas**

'Woah mate, it's awesome!'

Harry, Ron and Hermione were in Harry's bedroom, crouched on the carpeted floor around Harry's moving model of a Quidditch Pitch. It was the first day of the Christmas Holidays, and now that the stresses of schoolwork were over for a bit, Harry had decided it was about time Ron and Hermione got a tour of his real bedroom.

Harry's bedroom was located above Dumbledore's office, on a landing that included a bathroom, a study, and Albus' room, as well as Harry's own. It had been his bedroom for just over ten years, changing an evolving overtime as he slowly grew up. It was decorated quite simply now, with basic shades of blue and green making up his bed covers and carpet and providing a nice contrast with the dark wood of the furniture. Save for his Quidditch Pitch model, his broomstick (a Cleansweep Six) and his old kite, most of his toys and things were packed away in cupboards and chests. He had a desk, too, which was as neat as he'd left it before starting school. Harry hadn't gotten a chance to come up to his room during term, and there wouldn't have been any need to do so anyway, as he slept in the First Years Dormitory now.

'I haven't used it in a while,' Harry said, smiling at Ron's enthusiasm. 'But we can play later, if you want. The players move where you tell them to, just like with chess.'

'It's great,' said Ron eagerly. 'How much did it cost?'

Harry shrugged, slightly embarrassed. From what Ron had told him before, Ron and his family were quite poor. Harry wasn't rich, by any means, and Albus and Minerva had never spoiled him, but he knew a lot of the things he owned were a bit more on the expensive side.

'I'm not really sure, it was a present.'

'The players move on command?' Hermione spoke up. 'How does that even work? They're made of plastic; they're not supposed to understand you! It must be a brilliant work of magic. . .' she trailed off, thinking.

Harry and Ron shared a look - a look they usually shared whenever Hermione got excited about a new discovery, this time mixed with a hint of surprise that Hermione actually seemed to be interested in something related to Quidditch. Hermione was a good friend and the three of them got on very well, but if there was one thing they disagreed on, it was Quidditch. Much to the outrage of her two friends, Hermione thought the sport was boring and terribly thought out.

Oh, and homework, too. Though Albus and Minerva had managed to instill a good enough work ethic into Harry, he still much rather preferred playing a game of exploding snap with Ron over doing his potions' homework with Hermione.

'We should head back downstairs, now,' Harry said, 'I think the Great Hall is supposed to be decorated today!'

Ron and Hermione nodded, and the three of them headed out onto the landing and down the flight of stairs. Albus was sitting at his desk, writing something with a large grey quill, but he smiled at them as they walked through the office and across to the rotating stairwell.

'I still can't believe Albus Dumbledore is your guardian,' whispered Hermione as they made their way down the stairwell. 'I mean, I know he is, but still. . . he's _Dumbledore_!'

'Don't forget he used to change Harry's nappies when Harry was a baby!' Ron blurted out. It wasn't the first time he'd said something along those lines.

Despite his embarrassment, Harry laughed. It _was_ weird whenever you thought about it. Hermione just rolled her eyes and muttered a usual 'Honestly, Ron.'

They reached the Entrance Hall a few minutes later only to realise that their path to the Great Hall was blocked by a massive green fir tree, and a rather giant of a man as well.

'Hagrid!'

'Hello, you lot,' said Hagrid, poking his head through the branches to look at them. 'Excited for the holidays?'

'Yes,' Hermione said, who had met Hagrid for the first time soon after becoming friends with Harry and Ron. 'We were just heading down to go see the decorations in the Great Hall.'

'Ah, yes, they're a real treat this year!' said Hagrid excitedly. 'I was just on me way ter take this tree over to there-'

'Would you mind moving out of the way?' came a sudden rude drawl from behind them. Harry, Ron and Hermione turned to find the very unwelcome sight of Draco Malfoy and his cronies walking towards them.

'What do you want?' Ron snapped. Though the three of them had managed to avoid Malfoy outside of class for the most part ever since Halloween, coming across him in a school of less than 500 students, even in a school as large as Hogwarts, was inevitable.

'Trying to earn some extra money, Weasley?' Malfoy sneered, ignoring Ron's comment. 'Hoping to be a gamekeeper yourself when you leave Hogwarts, I suppose – that hut of Hagrid's must seem like a palace compared to what _your_ family's used to. . .'

Ron dived at Malfoy before Harry and Hermione could stop him, just as Snape appeared at the top of the stairs.

'WEASLEY!'

Harry jumped. Ron let go of the front of Malfoy's robes.

Snape came to stand next to the Slytherin students. Harry averted his gaze as the Potions Professor approached, but he needn't have worried. Snape completely ignored his presence, as usual.

'He was provoked, Professor Snape,' said Hagrid, sticking his face out from behind the branches. 'Malfoy was insultin' his family.'

'Be that as it may, fighting is against Hogwarts rules, Hagrid,' said Snape silkily. 'Five points from Gryffindor, Weasley, and be grateful it isn't more. Move along, all of you.'

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle pushed roughly past the tree, scattering needles everywhere and smirking. Snape followed.

'I'll get him,' said Ron, grinding his teeth at Malfoy's back, 'one of these days, I'll get him. . . and Snape, too. . .'

Hermione looked like she wanted to disagree, but said nothing. Harry knew she disliked Malfoy as much as he and Ron did, and she certainly didn't love Snape, but just didn't want to admit it out loud.

'Cheer up, it's nearly Christmas,' said Hagrid, patting Ron's shoulder sympathetically and nearly sending him through the floor. 'C'mon, let's go an' see the Great Hall.'

So Harry, Ron and Hermione followed Hagrid and his tree through into the Great Hall, where Minerva and Professor Flitwick were busy with the Christmas decorations.

'Ah, Hagrid, the last tree – put it in the far corner, would you?'

Hagrid ambled off to leave the tree with the others, and Harry, Ron and Hermione stepped closer to Minerva.

'Hello, Harry, Miss Granger, Mr Weasley.'

'Hello, Professor,' said Ron and Hermione.

'Hi,' smiled Harry.

'Here to see the decorations?' asked Minerva as she raised her wand and levitated a snake of silver tinsel onto a windowsill.

'Yes,' said Harry. 'It's Ron and Hermione's first Hogwarts Christmas.'

'Of course,' said Minerva, smiling at the trio. She'd been delighted to see Harry make good friends so quickly- he'd lived a rather lonely childhood, up in the castle with no one his own age to play with- especially friends like Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Ron came from a good family, a family who'd been a part of the Order of the Phoenix during the war, no less. And Hermione was a brilliant child, one of Minerva's favourite students. They were probably the best two friends Harry could have made at Hogwarts.

'We're going to go look now,' said Harry, pulling Ron and Hermione forwards. 'Bye!'

As he walked past Minerva, she reached out to ruffled his hair. 'Hey!' Harry protested, dodging, but he was secretly pleased. Minerva laughed.

The Great Hall was truly beautiful this year. . . perhaps even more so than usual, Harry thought. Festoons of holly and mistletoe hung all around the walls and no fewer than twelve Christmas trees stood around the room, some sparkling with tiny icicles, others glittering with hundreds of candles. They watched for a few moments as Professor Flitwick made golden bubbles appear out of the end of his wand to suspend in the air above the tables.

'It's beautiful,' breathed Hermione, staring in wonder at all the decorations.

'Yeah,' said Ron. 'Brilliant. . .'

Harry was used to the Hall looking like this. He had, after all, spent ten Christmases at Hogwarts, 4 or 5 of which he could remember. Even so, he nodded enthusiastically in agreement. It was always great to see the school decorated for the holidays.

* * *

Christmas Day came quickly, much to everyone's delight.

Harry and Ron had the dormitory to themselves, and the common room was far emptier than usual. Most of the Gryffindors had gone home for the holidays, including Hermione, who had been eager to spend time with her parents over the break after having been away from them for nearly three months. Ron had initially being planning on going home as well, but Mr and Mrs Weasley had decided last-minute to go to Romania to visit Ron's brother Charlie, so he and his other brothers had stayed at Hogwarts.

Harry and Ron brought out their presents, which they'd woken up to find in small piles at the foot of their beds, and set themselves up on the best armchairs by the fire to open them. Hermione had gifted both Harry and Ron two small boxes containing a selection of muggle sweets and a new toothbrush from her parents' dentist clinic. Hagrid had sent Harry a hand-carved palm-sized wooden owl, and Ron had given him a generous assortment of chocolates from Honeydukes. To Harry's surprise, Mrs Weasley had also sent him something – a green Weasley jumper ('we get them every year,' Ron told him, holding up his own maroon-coloured one) and a box of homemade fudge. Harry vowed to send her a thank-you note. There was also a sticky homemade treacle tart from Uncle Remus, and two nicely-wrapped presents from Albus and Minerva; a broomstick-servicing kit and a set of small, detailed, moving magical beast figurines (which included a dragon, a hippogriff and a Cerberus). Harry knew Hermione would be fascinated by them when he showed her. Even Ron, who had grown up with just as much magic as Harry, seemed impressed.

With the small amount of pocket money Harry had been saving up for the past few months, he'd managed to get a book on magical history for Hermione, a giant box of chocolate frogs for Ron, a box of Remus' favourite sweets for Remus, a book on dragons for Hagrid, a very nice quill for Minerva, and a pair of brightly-coloured spotted socks for Albus (it had been a running joke between them for years).

After unwrapping all their presents and returning them to their dormitory, Harry and Ron spent the rest of the morning by the fire, trying to eat anything they could spear on a toasting fork – bread, crumpets, marshmallows, scones – and plotting ways of getting Malfoy expelled, which were fun to talk about even if they wouldn't work.

'We could convince the owls in the Owlery to drop him on top of the staff table during dinner. . .'

'Or we could slip him a potion that would make him start insulting everyone!'

'How would we get a potion like that? We would have to make it ourselves, and I suck at potions.'

'Hermione could help us!'

'. . .'

'Yeah, maybe not. . .'

* * *

It was a wonderful sight that greeted Harry and Ron when they walked into the Great Hall for Christmas lunch later that day. There were just under one hundred students sitting at the four house tables. Close to twenty Gryffindors sat at the Gryffindor table, but none of them were in Harry's year (though he did recognise a few faces). All five tables, including the staff table, were laden with enough food to feed a small town. A hundred roast turkeys, mountains of roast and boiled potatoes, platters of fat chipolatas, tureens of buttered peas and parsnips, silver boats of thick, rich gravy, cranberry sauce and bread pudding, bowls of Brussel sprouts, roasted chestnuts and sweet potatoes. . . Ron looked like, well. . . like Christmas had come early, and Harry felt very much the same. He loved Christmas lunch. He caught Albus' gaze as he and Ron sat down, and couldn't stop himself from grinning broadly and mouthing a quick 'thank you' for the earlier presents.

The food tasted just as amazing as it looked.

Stacks of wizarding crackers lay every few feet along the table. Harry pulled a green cracker with Ron and it went off with a blast like a canon, engulfing them in a cloud of red smoke. Several white mice, luminous balloons, wizard chess pieces and a boat captain's hat came out. Harry saw Albus pull a cracker with Professor Sprout and swap his usual pointed wizard's hat for a flowered bonnet once the pink smoke that had erupted from their cracker had faded.

Dessert soon followed the turkey. Mince pies, Christmas pudding, Christmas cake, fruitcake, sponge cake, trifle, shortbread biscuits, gingerbread, ice-cream and cream. . . Ron's brother Percy nearly broke his teeth on a silver sickle embedded in his slice of Christmas cake. There were drinks for the adults at the staff table too. Harry watched as Hagrid got steadily drunker as the meal went on, finally twisting sideways to kiss Minerva on the cheek. Harry couldn't stop himself from bursting out laughing as Minerva giggled and blushed, her top hat lop-sided.

The rest of the afternoon passed by very quickly. Harry and the Weasleys spent a very happy couple of hours having a furious snowball fight in the grounds; Harry and Fred unfortunately losing to Ron and George, though it was a close battle. Even Percy joined in for a few minutes, scoring several good hits and narrowly avoiding hitting Professor Pryus in the back of the head as the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher made his way across the grounds. Dinner that night consisted of turkey sandwiches, crumpets and leftover Christmas cake. Everyone felt too sleepy and full to do anything, so Harry and Ron just relaxed into some armchairs and played a slow-moving game of chess, which Ron barely finished before falling asleep. Harry considered lulling off into a sleep, too, but felt the sudden urge to go and see Albus and Minerva. It had been his first Christmas without them. Well, maybe not without them. . . they had, after all, been present during dinner, but he hadn't spent all day with them like he had every other year. Harry excused himself from the still-awake members of the group (Fred and George were busy playing a quiet game of exploding snap in one corner), and made his way out into the corridor, where he walked for several minutes until he reached Albus' office and the place he called home.

'Ah, Harry.' Albus was in the small room behind the main office, seated in a squishy purple armchair. The room was the same as ever, though it was decorated for Christmas and had a large Christmas tree next to the roaring fireplace. Harry made his way into the room and sat down on a couch opposite Albus.

'How did you know it was me?'

'My dear boy, it _is_ my office. . . I know everything that goes on in here!'

Harry snorted.

'Yes, well, truthfully. . . I suspected you might come up tonight. Can't spend Christmas without wishing us a happy holidays, can you?'

'Happy Christmas, Albus,' Harry smiled. 'And thank you again for the presents!'

'Happy Christmas to you too, Harry. And thank _you_ for the socks, they suit my style perfectly.'

Harry giggled, and Minerva chose that very moment to walk in, a tray of tea floating slowly behind her. After placing in down on a table, she gave Harry a tight hug- which Harry returned with an enthusiastic 'Happy Christmas!'- and sat down next to him on the couch. Albus sent two cups of tea zooming towards them through the air and Harry and Minerva each took one. The tree of them sat in comfortable silence as they drank their tea.

'We actually have one more present for you, Harry,' said Albus after a few minutes, taking a final sip from his cup.

Harry looked up, surprised. 'What is it? It's not chocolate, is it?'

He didn't think he could take another bite of food.

'No, I think we've all had enough of that for today,' Albus chuckled knowingly. He reached inside his robes and pulled out a very lumpy looking package. 'It's something that used to belong to your father. I've kept it safe for all these years, but we thought it was high time it was returned to you.'

'My father?' Harry leant forwards and took the present. Though he had many pictures of his parents and several things that had belonged to him when he'd been a baby and they'd still been alive, he didn't really have anything of _theirs_. He eagerly tore open the paper, and a smooth pile of fabric slid out onto his lap.

'A cloak?' he asked, lifting it up. It had a beautiful texture, rich and shimmering in the light.

'Put it on,' prompted Minerva, smiling.

Harry stood up and swung it over his shoulders. 'It fits pretty w- ahhhh!' He yelled in surprise when he glanced down and saw that his entire body had disappeared. 'It's an invisibility cloak!'

'Indeed it is,' said Albus. 'Your father got up to quite a lot of mischief with it when he was in school, but I hope you will use it well, Harry.'

Harry grinned broadly. He couldn't be happier to have something that had belonged to his dad, especially something as cool as an Invisibility Cloak. What with spending time with Ron and his brothers, eating an incredible Christmas feast, and receiving an invisibility cloak from his dad, this had truly been the best Christmas ever.

'Don't worry, I will!'

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 **A/N:** **You may have noticed I changed the timing of events here a little bit. In the books the Great Hall was decorated on the second last day of classes before the holidays, and the students returning home didn't leave until a few days later. But this timing fit in better with the story, so I hope you don't mind :)**

 **A Massive thank you to everyone who has been leaving reviews. . . I can't tell you how much I appreciate them! I'm sorry I'm taking so long to post each chapter, but I'm trying my hardest to get better at it.**


	7. Chapter 7: The End of a Year

**Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry Potter**

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 **Chapter 7: The End of a Year**

And so, the rest of the school year flew by. New Years' Eve was spent playing outside in the snow all day- with Harry and Ron proudly winning a snowman building competition against Fred and George- and then sitting around a fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, watching the clock tick by into 1992 as they sipped from mugs of hot cocoa and threw marshmallows at each other. Hermione arrived the next day from staying with her parents, and the three friends had less than an afternoon of excitedly talking about their holidays before she was hassling Ron and Harry to start preparing for their end-of-year exams.

'But they're not until June!' protested Ron, staring open-mouthed at the exam revision schedule Hermione was preparing for them over breakfast on the first morning of classes. 'We still have over five months until then!'

Harry had to agree. 'Besides,' he told Hermione. 'We're only First Years. The exams won't be important- or at least, not _as_ important-' Harry added hastily at Hermione's appalled look, '-until we do our OWLs in fifth year.'

In the end, and after much persuading, they managed to convince Hermione to hold off studying until at least April, though that was as late as she was willing to start, and this did not stop her from helping them keep on top of their homework load as it slowly began to increase.

In the first few weeks back, Harry found a moment to proudly show Ron and Hermione his father's invisibility cloak. Both were awed- especially Hermione, who'd never heard of such a thing before- and Ron immediately begged Harry if they could use it to prank Draco Malfoy. Even Hermione, who was usually very particular about following the rules, couldn't say no to such an opportunity.

'This is the perfect chance!' said Ron excitedly. 'We'll finally be able to get him back for being such a prat and he'll never even know it was us!'

Harry was excited too, and the three of them immediately began to think of ideas on what to do. He felt a small twinge of hesitation as he remembered Minerva asking him not to start any fights with Malfoy and Albus telling him to use the cloak well, but pushed it aside as quickly as it had come. Malfoy deserved to be pranked and besides, no one was going to find out they did anything- not even Malfoy himself- if everything worked out.

* * *

Five weeks after term had started up again, the perfect opportunity finally arose. Malfoy had been particularly nasty that week, throwing provocative insults at them whenever he saw them in the corridors and even in the classroom if he could get away with it (and he usually could, especially when it came to Potions). Harry, Ron and Hermione had ignored every jibe, though it had definitely taken all of Ron's self-control not to lunge at the Slytherin when he had insulted Mrs Weasley. So when they found themselves leaving Potions half an hour before dinner on a Friday night and realised that Snape had asked Malfoy to stay behind for a few moments, the three friends stopped quickly behind a corner and pulled out the invisibility cloak, which Harry had been carrying with him since the day they'd first decided to prank Malfoy. It easily covered all three of them, and they hardly needed to lean forwards for it to hide their feet. They waited patiently in the corridor, trying to calm their thundering heartbeats, for Malfoy to emerge.

'Here he comes _,'_ whispered Harry several minutes later. Malfoy was striding towards them, smiling broadly, and Snape was thankfully nowhere to be seen. They watched as he walked past, then began to follow him as quietly as they could. Once they were a few hallways down from the Potions' classroom, the three of them stopped a few meters behind Malfoy, and the pranking began.

' _Meow!'_

Malfoy jumped in shock and whirled around, frowning. Trying fruitlessly to contain a smile at the other boy's confusion, Hermione let out another muffled cat meow.

'Mrs Norris,' muttered Malfoy under his breath. He looked around the empty corridor, a scowl on his face. 'I'm not doing anything wrong, you know,' he said loudly.

Harry nudged Ron underneath the cloak, and his friend gave him a broad grin before speaking.

' _Malfoy! I should've known, sulking around the corridors by yourself!_ '

It was such a perfect imitation of Mr Filch that Harry almost, _almost_ thought that the grouchy caretaker had actually appeared right beside him. Malfoy jumped again.

'Filch!' he said angrily. 'I knew it was you.'

' _Did you, boy?'_ said Ron, his voice eerily raspy. _'Afraid of getting into trouble, are you? I know you're up to something!'_

'What?' said Malfoy, indignant. 'I am certainly _not.'_

' _We'll see about that!'_ growled Ron, trying hard not to laugh.

'Where are you!' yelled Malfoy, turning around multiple times. Was that a tinge of worry they could hear in his voice? 'Show yourself, squib!'

Harry, Ron and Hermione shot surprised looks at each other. Mr Filch was a _squib_? It _would_ explain several things, and the idea seemed vaguely familiar to Harry. . .

' _How dare you!'_ Ron roared suddenly, deciding to take the gamble that Malfoy's insult was based on fact. And then, realising in panic that they wouldn't be able to keep up the rouse much longer, Hermione started to raise her wand to quietly jinx Malfoy with the dancing feet spell, _Tarantallegra_. . .

'Draco! _What_ is going _on_?'

Harry, Ron and Hermione froze. It was Professor Snape, striding down the corridor towards them as his robes billowed out behind him. Harry held his breath and felt as Ron and Hermione tensed up even further next to him.

'Professor,' said Malfoy hurriedly, 'it's Filch-'

'I beg your pardon?' questioned Snape, moving to stand next to his favourite student. 'Filch?'

'Yes, sir, he was yelling at me just before!'

'The corridor is empty, Draco.'

'Yeah, I know!' said Malfoy angrily. 'But he's here! I heard him and his stupid cat. . .'

Snape's dark eyes narrowed.

'Filch!' he barked. 'Show yourself!'

Harry, Ron and Hermione stayed huddled under the cloak, hardly daring to breathe. _Please go away and leave us alone,_ thought Harry desperately. _  
_

'I couldn't see him anywhere,' said Malfoy from behind Snape, 'but he was _here._ '

Snape's cold gaze swept the corridor, passing several times over the invisible Harry, Ron and Hermione. Then, slowly, he raised his wand and said: ' _Homenum Revelio!_ '

Hermione gasped just as Harry felt a horrible swooping sensation above his head, and in shock, the three of them stumbled backwards and toppled onto the floor with a loud _CRASH!_ The invisibility cloak slipped off their shoulders, exposing them. Harry lay breathing heavily on the ground, wishing he could sink down through the floor. _It was over. They were done for._

'What-' cried Snape in obvious surprise, moving towards them. He made eye-contact briefly with Harry- just for a second- and Harry flinched despite himself. Hard. Snape stopped dead in his tracks, then turned to Ron and Hermione.

'Weasley! Granger!'

They scrambled up into a standing position, but Harry stayed sitting on the floor, staring blankly at his shoes. Malfoy was standing behind Snape, looking just a shocked as his professor, though that shock soon turned to anger as he realised he'd been tricked by them.

'We're sorry, Professor,' stammered Hermione. 'We didn't do anything to him, we were just trying to-' she broke off, unsure of what to say, and probably realising at the same time that it didn't really matter anyway when it came to Snape.

'20 points from Gryffindor each for harassing a fellow student!' Snape said coldly. 'Now off with you!'

He turned around briskly and grabbed Malfoy's shoulder, swinging him around. Malfoy looked back at them, furious, but said nothing as Snape led him quickly away down the corridor.

'Damn it!' growled Ron after the two Slytherins had disappeared. 'If Snape hadn't shown up. . .'

'We shouldn't have done this,' Hermione was saying. 'We should've realised we'd get caught, and now we've lost 60 whole house points!'

Harry suddenly blinked several times, as though only just realising where he was, and slowly stood up from the floor.

'Harry?'

Ron and Hermione stared at him worriedly, but Harry only gave them a distracted smile, trying not to think about the pounding in his head. 'C-come on,' he said. 'Let's go. . . don't wanna miss dinner. . .'

'Alright,' agreed Ron, wisely choosing not to ask what was up. 'Let's go, then. I'm hungry!'

Dinner was a quiet affair. Harry was still shaken by the confrontation with Snape, and worried that the Potions' professor was going to tell Albus and Minerva about what they'd been doing. What if his guardians confiscated his cloak? And he didn't want them to be disappointed, especially after Minerva had told him not to let Malfoy get to him. . .

He nibbled slowly on his mashed potatoes as his stomach flipped over and over again. He'd avoided looking up at the staff table when he'd walked into the Great Hall, so Minerva and Albus were bound to know something was up already, even if Snape didn't say anything. . . right?

'Snape,' Ron was still muttering darkly. 'I can't decide who's worse- him or Malfoy.'

He brightened up and looked up at them, an idea suddenly coming to him. 'Hey, we should prank _Snape_ next time!'

Hermione gave him a nervous look. 'I don't think that would be a-' she began, but was interrupted by Harry blurting out a loud 'No!'

His two friends stared at him.

'I m-mean,' Harry stammered quickly. 'As Hermione was saying, I don't think that would be a- a good idea. And S-Snape hates me enough anyway. I don't want to make him angrier. . .'

'He wouldn't get angry at you,' protested Ron, waving his fork. 'Didn't you see? He didn't even yell at you before! He always ignores you, even in class. I don't think he's spoken to you all year!'

'That's true,' said Hermione. 'You knew him before, didn't you, Harry? Maybe he finds it too weird to tell you off seeing as he's known you since you were a baby. . .'

'He just hates me,' mumbled Harry, staring hard at his almost-full plate. 'I- I don't know why.' A lie, of course, but he wasn't about to tell Ron and Hermione _anything_ about. . . well, about _that._

'Well, I guess that's better than him breathing down your neck in class, like with poor Neville,' said Ron, glancing down the table at Neville, who was chatting animatedly with Seamus and Dean about a new plant installation in the greenhouses.

Hermione was frowning at Harry, but Harry pointedly ignored her and steered the conversation back into safer waters.

'So- so no pranks on Snape, yeah?' he gave them a small smile. 'Or on anyone else, at least for a while. . . but did you see the look on Malfoy's face when he couldn't work out what was going on?'

'He was so confused!' grinned Ron, and three burst into fits of laughter at the memory, the mood instantly becoming more cheerful. They didn't even notice Malfoy scowling at them from the Slytherin table, but wouldn't have cared even if they had.

* * *

Unfortunately, exams descended upon them quicker than Harry and Ron could've ever imaged, considerably dampening the mood of every person in the castle (particularly that of the older students sitting their OWLs and NEWTs). Luckily Hermione had gotten them started on studying several months beforehand, so the prospect of sitting their examinations wasn't as dreadful as it was for a lot of the students in their year ('I'm doomed,' Neville took to reminding them at every opportunity) . . . though Harry was of course still nervous that he wouldn't do well.

He needn't have been, though. Everyone in their year passed, Hermione- of course- with flying colours (somehow managing to gain six extra points on the Transfiguration exam). Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts were Harry's best classes, so he scored high scores on both of the exams and relatively good scores on the other exams, though he and Ron only just managed a pass History. He proudly went up to Albus' office one night to show Albus and Minerva his results.

'I'm glad to see you studied hard,' said Minerva, smiling warmly at him as she finished looking through his Herbology exam results.

Harry blushed and smiled awkwardly, though he was secretly very pleased he'd made them happy. 'It's all thanks to Hermione, of course. Ron and I wouldn't have managed it without her!'

'Yes, I'm sure Miss Granger was a big help,' said Minerva, laughing softly.

'Your mother and father would've been proud, Harry,' said Albus gently, crouching down next to Harry and putting a hand on his shoulder. Harry swallowed. 'And we're proud of you, too.'

'You're off to a good start,' said Minerva. 'Keep doing everything the same way next year and you'll do fine. . . just please, don't start anything with Malfoy!'

'Now, now, Minerva,' said Albus, blue eyes twinkling. 'A little bit of school mischief never did anyone any harm. . . and you've got to admit that Harry and his friends' prank on Malfoy earlier this year was wonderfully executed. . . for the most part, anyway.'

'You knew about that?' Harry gasped in surprise. 'But- I- you didn't-'

'You've forgotten I know everything, Harry!' said Albus cheerfully. But at Harry's horrified glances between him and Minerva, he smiled reassuringly and stood up.

'Don't worry Harry, you are not in any trouble for something you did five months ago.'

'I thought you'd be mad if you found out,' said Harry in a small voice. 'That's why I didn't tell you.'

Minerva shook her head and smiled a little. 'No, Harry, not really, but. . . _do_ tell us next time, will you? Though I sincerely hope there won't be another incident anytime soon!'

'I won't start anything on purpose,' Harry promised them. And he meant it. He wasn't going to let Malfoy get to him next year, not if he had any say in it. Malfoy was always going to be a prat, so the sooner he learnt to ignore the other boy the easier his life would become. . . besides, it would seriously annoy Malfoy if he never saw him, Ron or Hermione rise to the bait!

* * *

Harry found himself saying goodbye to Ron and Hermione a few days later, much sooner than he would've liked. They were the first friends he'd ever had, and he was reluctant to see them go, even though he knew he'd most likely see them at some point over the summer holidays. The three of them stood on the platform at Hogsmeade station as students moved around them in a frantic last-minute rush to hop on the train before it left.

'I'll write to you,' said Hermione, hugging Harry quickly. 'Ever week, if I can!'

'Yeah,' said Ron, grinning at him. 'And I'll speak to mum and dad about you coming to visit us at the Burrow for a few days!'

'That's be great, guys,' Harry smiled. 'And yeah, I'll write too, of course!' Hedwig would be excited at the prospect of finally being able to deliver some letters for Harry.

The train gave a final whistle, and Hermione grabbed Ron's hand and pulled him onto the train through the nearest carriage doors. 'Come on. . . bye Harry!'

'Bye!' Harry called as the doors slid shut and the train began to move. Ron and Hermione waved through one of the windows, and Harry grinned broadly, waving back.

'See you soon!'

The scarlet train disappeared around a corner, and Harry was left standing alone on the empty platform.

'Alright,' he told himself, turning around to face the outline of Hogwarts, rising high above the trees in the distance. A group of birds flew up from the tree line with a screech, and a warm breeze ruffled his hair as he smiled. 'Time to go home.'

* * *

 **A/N: Things will hopefully be picking up the pace now that Harry is about to enter his second year at Hogwarts. As you can see, nothing very exciting happened in the first year (unlike all the Philosopher's Stone drama in canon), but this should all start to change in the next few chapters.**

 **BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has left a review! I really appreciate it, so keep 'em coming :)**


	8. Chapter 8: The Burrow

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

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 **Chapter 8: The Burrow**

It was two weeks into the summer holidays of 1992, and Harry Potter was excited. Today was the day he was going to see Ron and Hermione for the first time since they'd said his farewells at Hogsmeade Station at the end of the school year, and he'd been eagerly anticipating it ever since he'd begged Albus and Minerva to let him go and see them several days after the start of the break. Minerva had told him to wait for a few days to let his friends settle down at home first before organising a day together, otherwise he would've tried to do so earlier. But understanding, though slightly reluctantly, Harry had contented with exchanging letters with them a couple of times a week.

He sat at his desk in his room now, sorting through some of the letters. The sun was only just rising up behind the mountains surrounding Hogwarts castle, but Harry hadn't been able to sleep. He really shouldn't have been this excited- after all, he was only going to go to Ron's house- The Burrow- for the day. It shouldn't have been that big of a deal, and maybe it wasn't for a lot of people, but Harry had spent most of his childhood alone, without any true friends his age. Sure, he'd played games with older Hogwarts students before, and he'd hung out with other children in the muggle playgrounds Uncle Remus used to take him to when he was younger, but he'd never actually had any friends. This was something Harry had been longing for his whole life.

Not that he'd ever let Ron and Hermione know this, of course, or even Albus and Minerva!

Harry smiled as he picked up one of Hermione's letters. They were always much longer and detailed than Ron's, though Harry loved receiving both. This one was from earlier on in the holidays, one of the first she'd sent him.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _How are you? Happy to be getting a break from school, I bet, even though you_ are _technically still at school. You and Ron never stop complaining about homework! Which reminds me. . . don't leave your summer homework until too late! I'm sure Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall will make sure you don't, but you should really start doing it before they remind you. The two essays we have to finish for Potions are especially long!_

 _It's great being back with my mum and dad, even though I saw them six months ago at Christmas. I haven't been able to show them any of the magic I can do (I wonder- do you think you'd be allowed to do magic at Hogwarts while you're there over the holidays?) but they've really liked looking through all my schoolbooks and supplies. I think I might buy them a few interesting magical items (like a self-brushing toothbrush!) when we go to Diagon Alley later on in the summer. Do you think we could all go together to get our books and things? It'd be a lot of fun if all our families could go to Diagon Alley together this year! My parents would be really excited to be able to meet you and Ron before we go back to school again._

 _Love,_

 _Hermione_

Hedwig let out a sleepy hoot from her cage- which stood on the corner of the desk- just as Harry finished re-reading the letter. She was really enjoying delivering all the letters Harry sent Ron and Hermione, and the letters they sent to Harry and to each other. Ron had started off using his family owl Errol to deliver the post, but the poor owl was getting old and unreliable for long-distance deliveries, so he'd eventually started borrowing Hedwig to send letters to Harry and Hermione. Hermione, of course, didn't have an owl of her own. Harry wasn't even sure she'd be able to get one, with her living in a muggle house and all. Though he supposed there had to be plenty of muggleborns out there with owls. Dean Thomas was muggleborn, or at least, he lived in a muggle area with his non-magical mother, and _he_ had an owl.

'Going to sleep?' said Harry, looking up and reaching out to stroke Hedwig's soft feathers. Hedwig nibbled his finger in reply. She'd been out hunting all night, and had returned only an hour or so earlier. Harry gave her a smile and turned back to pick up a letter from Ron. This one was from just a week ago.

 _Hi Harry,_

 _Mum says she'd love you to come and visit! I talked to Hermione as well, and she wants to come too. How does next Saturday sound? You can Floo over in the morning and stay until dinner._

 _Ginny has been pestering me with questions about you ever since I got back. She always loved listening to stories of you, growing up, and now that she knows we are friends she's been quizzing me on everything Harry Potter. It will be nice when you come over and she bothers you instead, for a change._

 _See you soon, hopefully!_

 _Ron_

Grinning, Harry put all the letters on his desk into a drawer, then stood up and walked over to one of the large, tall windows in his room, pressing his hands against the cool glass. Half the view was taken up by the mountains and the slowly brightening sky, and the other half by the grounds surrounding Hogwarts. He could see the Quidditch pitch across the grassy lawns to his right, and a fraction of the Black Lake down near the base of the castle. The Forbidden Forest began somewhere to his left, but Harry deliberately avoided thinking about it. The day was already looking like it was going to be perfectly sunny, and Harry wasn't going to let any bad thoughts ruin it. He was going to have _fun._

Several hours later after a quick breakfast of toast and sausages, Harry was standing, eagerly ready to depart, next to the fireplace in Albus' office. The flames already burned green with Floo powder.

'Enjoy yourself, Harry,' said Albus, as Harry and Minerva stepped into the flames. Harry had wanted to travel by himself (he _was_ nearly twelve, after all!) but his guardians had insisted that one of them go with him through the Floo, just in case something went wrong and Harry ended up at a strange location.

'I will! Bye!' cried Harry, just as Minerva yelled ' _The Burrow_!'

Albus' office disappeared in a whirlwind of green and black as Harry and Minerva spun off, and seconds later Harry was shooting out of the fireplace. He landed with a thud on a soft carpet and quickly stood up, brushing the dust off his clothes. Minerva followed a moment later, though she exited the fireplace straight-backed and elegantly.

Shaking his head with an incredulous look, Harry turned to face the room he was in. It was small and warm, filled with squishy red-brown armchairs and couches. The stone walls were lined with old children's drawings and paintings. Harry had just enough time to take this all in before there was the sound of thudding footsteps from somewhere else in the house and two familiar faces appeared in the doorway.

'Harry!'

Ron and Hermione rushed towards him, hardly giving him a chance to breathe before Hermione was hugging him tightly around the shoulders and Ron was clapping him on the back.

'Oh- hi Professor McGonagall!' squeaked Hermione, letting go of Harry as she realised who was standing behind him.

'Good morning Miss Granger, Mr Weasley.'

'Morning, Professor,' said Ron, glancing up at her and then grinning at Harry. 'C'mon, mum's in the kitchen!'

'When did you get here?' Harry asked Hermione, letting himself be led out of the room by Ron. Minerva followed behind them.

'Only a few minutes ago,' said Hermione cheerfully. 'I haven't even gotten a tour of the house yet!'

'I'll show you guys around once Harry says hello to mum,' said Ron. He led them across a short, narrow corridor with a rickety staircase on one end and what looked to be the front door on the other, and then through into the kitchen.

The kitchen was small and rather cramped, but it had a warm and homey sort of feel to it that Harry immediately loved. There was a scrubbed wooden table and chairs in the middle, and on the wall opposite them was a clock with only one hand and no numbers at all. Written around the edges were things like 'time to feed the chickens' and 'you're late'. Books were stacked on the mantelpiece; books with titles like ' _charm your own cheese- enchantment in baking'_ and ' _one-minute feasts- it's magic!_ ' Harry wondered if the kitchen house-elves at Hogwarts had cookbooks, or if their cooking knowledge was simply passed down from house-elf to house-elf. An old radio next to the sink was playing a faint tune that Harry thought sounded like a popular song by the famous singing sorceress, Celestina Warbeck. He knew Minerva was not very fond of her music.

As the four of them walked into the kitchen, a short, slightly plump woman came rushing out of a door at the far end of the kitchen, holding a tea towel in one hand and a wand in the other.

'Hello!' she called, flinging the tea towel in the direction of the kitchen bench as she made her way towards them. Minerva immediately stepped out from behind the three children and shook the woman's hand.

'Hello, Molly,' she said. 'It's been a while.'

'Minerva,' exclaimed Molly. 'How wonderful to see you!'

Aunt Minerva chuckled.

'Please, Molly, call me Minerva. You haven't been my student in over 20 years!'

'My, was that really that long ago?' laughed Molly. 'Well alright then, Minerva it is, though it will no doubt take me a while to become accustomed to _that_ idea!'

'Mum,' said Ron, speaking up from beside Harry and Hermione. 'This is-'

' _Harry!_ ' cried Molly, turning to beam at him. She reached out and gave Harry a big, warm hug, which Harry returned awkwardly. 'How lovely it is to finally meet you! Ron's told me all about you, of course!'

'It's nice to meet you too, Mrs Weasley,' said Harry, his cheeks red.

'Well, I best be off, now,' Minerva said, smiling. 'Be good, alright, Harry? And make sure you let Molly know if you need anything.'

'I'll be fine,' replied Harry, though there was a slight hint of nervousness in his tone. This was the first time he was going to be somewhere outside of Hogwarts without Albus, Minerva or Uncle Remus since his capture two years previously. _I'm safe here,_ he thought to himself firmly. _Yeah, just like you were safe at Hogwarts,_ muttered a little voice in the back of his head, but Harry quickly shut that down and brought his attention back to the scene in the kitchen.

Aunt Minerva was nodding. 'I shall be back after lunch, Molly. Thank-you again for letting Harry visit.'

And with one last smile and a wave, Minerva was gone.

'Yeah, thanks for letting me visit Ron,' mumbled Harry, looking up at Mrs Weasley.

'Oh, it's no trouble, dear,' she said, smiling kindly down at him and Hermione. 'You two are welcome to visit whenever you'd like. Now, Ronald, why don't you show them up to your room?'

'That's what I was about to do!' Ron blurted out, and Harry and Hermione laughed.

The trio slipped out of the kitchen and made their way along the narrow corridor they had crossed before, this time going up the uneven staircase to their right, which led them zigzagging up through the house. On the third landing a door stood ajar, and Harry just managed to catch sight of a pair of bright brown eyes staring at him before it closed shut with a snap.

'Ginny,' said Ron in explanation. 'You don't know how weird it is for her to be this shy. I told you she never shuts up about you, normally.'

'She's probably still a bit starstruck at having the famous Harry Potter in her house,' said Hermione as they continued to climb, much to Harry's embarrassment, though he knew Hermione was probably right. 'I mean, just look at how everyone was acting around Harry during our first week of school.'

'Yeah,' agreed Ron, glancing back at Harry. 'Don't worry, though, mate. She'll warm up to you soon enough, and then she'll get to pester you with all those questions.'

'Gee, thanks Ron!'

They finally reached the last proper floor of the Burrow, where Ron's room was located. There was an attic above them with a ghoul in it, Ron explained, but that was it. The door to Ron's room had a peeling paint and a small plaque on it reading _'Ronald's Room'._

Harry stepped in, his head almost banging against the sloping ceiling, and blinked. It was like walking into a fire: nearly everything in Ron's room seemed to be a violent shade of bright orange. The bedspread, the walls, even the ceiling! Then Harry realised that Ron had covered nearly every inch of the shabby wallpaper with posters of the same seven witches and wizards, all wearing bright orange robes, carrying broomsticks and waving energetically.

'Woah,' he heard Hermione breathe from behind him. 'So – much – _orange_!'

'Are those the Chudley Cannons?' Harry asked Ron, pointing at the closest poster.

'Of course!' said Ron enthusiastically. 'They're my favourite team!'

Harry didn't know how he'd managed to go an entire school year without knowing this about Ron, considering the state of his friend's room.

Hermione, after getting over her initial shock, gravitated immediately to the pile untidy pile of schoolbooks in one corner, which stood next to an equally untidy pile of _The Adventures of Martin Miggs- The Mad Muggle_ comics, which Harry remembered reading when he was younger.

'Fascinating!' she said, picking up one of the comics. 'I've never seen a Wizard Comic before!'

'You can keep that one, if you like,' said Ron, much to Hermione's joy. 'I think that's my third copy.'

Ron's wand was lying on top of a fish tank full of frogspawn on the window sill. He picked it up longingly and sighed.

'Wish we were allowed to use magic outside of school. I miss doing spells.'

'I _know_ ,' groaned Hermione. 'I can't believe they expect us to go back next year without having practiced any magic for over two whole months!'

'Hey, it's not too bad,' said Harry, trying to cheer his friends up. 'At least you can read ahead in all the text books.'

'That's easy enough for you to say,' said Hermione. ' _You_ can do magic!'

This was true. Prompted by the initial question in Hermione's letter to him several weeks earlier, Harry had discovered that he could, in fact, do magic at Hogwarts over the summer break. Almost every day, he had been going through all the first-year spells they'd learnt over the past year in order to improve his skills, and Aunt Minerva had even started him on learning a few of the second-year Transfiguration spells.

'C'mon,' said Ron, changing topics as he placed his wand back down on the windowsill. 'I'll show you around the rest of the house.'

They made their way all the way back down the rickety staircase and through the house, chatting animatedly about this and that, until they found themselves stepping outside onto the front lawn.

From the outside, the Burrow looked as though it had once been a large stone pigsty (Harry could have sworn he could hear the faint sound of piglets squealing and snorting) but extra rooms had been added here and there until it was several storeys high and so crooked it looked as though it was held up by magic. Four or five chimneys were perched on top of the red roof, and a lop-sided sign (which read 'The Burrow') stuck in the ground next to them. A jumble of wellington boots and a very rusty cauldron stood next to the front door, and Harry and Hermione soon found themselves surrounded by several brown chickens that had been pecking their way around the yard, much to Ron's amusement.

'Where are Fred and George?' asked Harry, bending down to pet one of the hens curiously. He'd never seen a chicken in real life before. 'Aren't they home? And Percy?'

'Oh yeah,' replied Ron absentmindedly. 'Percy's out, visiting his girlfriend, Penelope Clearwater. And the twins are just out the back, in the other garden. Mum got them to start de-gnoming the garden earlier. She would've roped me into it, too, but luckily you guys were coming over!'

'De-gnoming the garden?' asked Hermione curiously.

'Yeah, our back garden is filled with gnomes. They sneak in all the time. We wouldn't really mind, normally, but they mess up Mum's flowers and vegetables and throw rocks at our windows, sometimes.'

'Real gnomes!' Hermione said in wonder. 'Oh, can we go and see?'

Unable to refuse, especially when Harry joined in Hermione's enthusiasm (he'd never seen a real gnome either), Ron led them around the house to the back garden.

The back garden was large and just as a garden should be, in Harry's opinion. There were plenty of weeds, the grass certainly needed a cutting, gnarled trees surrounded the stone walls, and mysterious strange plants- some of which Harry briefly recognised from Herbology- grew everywhere. There was also a neat flowerbed (a stark contrast to the rest of its surroundings) and a big green pond full of frogs in one corner. Fred and George Weasley were standing on the other end, bent double over a large peony bush. As they approached, there was a violent scuffling noise, and George straightened up, holding something tightly in his hands. It was a gnome- small and leathery looking, with a large knobbly bald head exactly like a potato. George held it at arm's length as it kicked out at him with its horny little feet; he grasped it around the ankles and turned it upside down before spotting the three friends.

'Oh!' George gave a shout in surprise, and Fred looked up. 'Harry! And Hermione!'

'Hi,' squeaked Hermione, still staring transfixed at the gnome in George's hands.

'Hello,' replied Harry.

'Why, how marvellous it is to see you!' cried Fred, moving to stand next to George. 'Simply wonderful! How are you, Harry old boy?'

Harry smiled, slightly bemused. 'Great. You?'

'Not so good now,' said George, though he was smiling, too. 'Mum made us come out to de-gnome the garden, and ickle Ronniekins and Ginny didn't have to help.'

'Oi!' protested Ron at the use of such a nickname.

'Can we help?' said Harry, glancing at Ron and Hermione. 'I've never de-gnomed a garden before.'

'Oh, yes!' cried Hermione.

Ron looked a bit less enthusiastic, but he gave in. 'Alright, why not. Fred, George?'

'Sure thing, little brother,' said George. 'Now watch, you two, and see how it's done.'

Harry and Hermione observed as George raised the struggling gnome he was holding high above his head ('Gerroff me!' it cried) and started to swing it in great circles like a lasso. Seeing the shocked and slightly sick sudden look on Harry's face, Ron hastily said 'it doesn't hurt them, only makes them really dizzy so that they can't find their way back to their gnome holes.'

Harry swallowed and nodded, though the uneasy feeling that had sprung up instantly in his stomach remained for a few more moments.

George let go of the gnome's ankles, and it flew twenty feet into the air and landed with a thud in the field over the hedge.

'Pitiful,' said Fred. 'I bet I can get mine beyond that stump.'

Harry still had reserves about making the gnomes dizzy once it was his turn, so he decided to just drop the first one he caught over the hedge, but the gnome, sensing weakness, sank its razor-sharp teeth into Harry's hand and he had a hard job shaking it off until-

'Wow, Harry, that must've been at least fifty feet...'

The air was soon thick with flying gnomes as Hermione, too, quickly got over any hesitation she may have had at flinging the small garden pests over the hedge.

'See, they're not too bright,' said George, seizing five or six gnomes at once. 'The moment they know the de-gnoming is going on, they storm up to have a look. You'd think they'd have learned by now just to stay put.'

The five of them kept it up, even managing to find a gnome hiding in an old boot, and Harry was just reaching out to grab his seventh gnome when he felt someone watching him from above, and looked up. Ginny Weasley was leaning out of a window, staring down at them. She immediately squeaked when Harry saw her, and the window slammed shut. Harry blinked, then shrugged and resumed his de-gnoming.

A short while later, they were done, and Harry watched the gnomes as they disappeared into the edge on the other side of the field.

'They'll be back,' said Ron. 'They love it here… dad's too soft with them, he thinks they're funny…'

Harry had yet to meet Mr Weasley- the man had left earlier that morning, before Harry had arrived, to go and work at the Ministry- but based on what he knew about Ron and his family, he could very much imagine that Ron's father would be one to think that a bunch of garden gnomes invading his garden would be funny.

'You know,' said Hermione as they made their way back inside, 'Muggle garden gnomes are very different to magical garden gnomes. Muggle ones don't move, for one, and they tend to look very much like a red-faced Father Christmas.'

'Father Christmas?' cried Ron incredulously. 'No way.'

'You'll see!' replied Hermione. 'I'll send you one for your birthday.'

Ron shuddered.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred and George were halfway up the stairs on their way back to Ron's bedroom when Mrs Weasley called them down for lunch, so they quickly backtracked a few steps and headed into the kitchen. The first thing Harry noticed when he walked through the doorway was that it smelt heavenly, almost as good- if not better- than the Hogwarts kitchens, and he couldn't help but let out a 'mmm' sound of content. Hermione's eyes, too, had lit up. Mrs Weasley was busy levitating plates and dishes of food onto the middle of the table, but she beamed at them as they sat down. Celestina Warbeck was still playing on the radio.

There was a thick, rather heavy-looking blue cookbook resting one of the chairs, open on page 213. Hermione picked it up before sitting down and showed it to the others.

' _Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide To Cooking Up A Storm_ ' she read, looking at the cover. There was a very big photograph on the front of a very good-looking wizard with wavy blond hair and bright blue eyes. It was moving, and kept winking cheekily up at them all.

'But Mum- you already know how to cook!' said Ron, frowning at the book.

'Oh, yes, but he's marvellous,' Mrs Weasley said, stopping to gaze lovingly at the photo of Gilderoy Lockhart. 'He knows _so_ many good cooking tips, it's a wonderful book…'

'Mum fancies him,' said Fred, in a very audible whisper.

'Don't be so ridiculous, Fred,' said Mrs Weasley, her cheeks pink, and Ginny chose that moment to come in and join the party. She sat down without a word next to George, several seats away from Harry, and avoided meeting his eye.

The food was wonderful, rivaling that of Hogwarts. Harry tucked in with gusto, thoroughly savouring his roast chicken, potatoes, carrots and gravy, as they talked about what they were looking forward to in the coming year. Mrs Weasley even contributed to the light-hearted conversation with a few stories from her days at Hogwarts- stories that Ron, Fred, George and Ginny had heard countless of times, but were naturally completely new to Harry and Hermione. Harry tried to initiate a few conversations with Ginny to try to get her to relax and open up a bit more (she hadn't said a word since arriving at the table) but after asking her if she was excited to be starting her first year and almost causing her to choke on a potato, he decided it was best to let her be for now.

After lunch, they trooped upstairs to Ron's room, where Harry, Ron and Hermione played several loud and exciting rounds of Exploding Snap with Fred and George. They talked more about the coming school year and speculated about who their new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher would be. Professor Pryus had retired the month before in order to spend more time with his family, and the position was once again empty.

'There's a curse on the position, you know,' said Harry, leaning against the end of Ron's bed.

'What?' exclaimed Hermione, looking up from her playing cards. 'How can there be a curse on a job?'

'It's true,' said Fred. 'Pretty much everyone knows about it. Apparently, there hasn't be a single Defence Professor in decades who's taught for more than a year.'

'Yep,' said Harry. 'Last year we had Professor Pryus, and then the year before that it was Professor Quail, who got some really bad dragon pox before the end-of-year exams, and then the year before _that_ it was Professor Kamaria… I don't know what happened to her.'

George suddenly leaned forwards, eyes bright. 'The rumour is,' he whispered, 'that it was You- Know-Who _himself_ who cursed the job!'

' _What?'_ cried Ron and Hermione incredulously. Harry said nothing, suddenly feeling very cold all over.

'They say it's because he didn't want anyone to be able to defend themselves properly, so he put a curse on the job so that there would never be any consistency with the teaching.'

'That's- that's ridiculous,' spluttered Hermione, and George shrugged.

'That's just what the rumours say. Could be true, could be all wrong… no one knows.'

'Hey, maybe Dumbledore does!' said Fred suddenly. 'He's really old, isn't he? Harry, you're close to him, and he's your guardian, right?'

'Yes-' Harry started to say.

'Great! So you can ask him if he knows anything!'

Harry swallowed. He had no intention of asking Albus anything of that sort, he did not want to talk about anything related to Voldemort, but he nodded and said 'Okay.'

Thankfully, and much to Harry's relief, the topic changed soon after that as the friends continued with their game. They had been playing for nearly an hour when there was a knock on Ron's door and Mrs Weasley poked her head in.

'Harry, dear, Minerva is here to pick you up.'

Harry stood up quickly, and Ron and Hermione followed him and Mrs Weasley out of the room as Fred and George called their goodbyes from behind. Aunt Minerva was waiting for them downstairs next to the Floo fireplace, in the same room they'd first arrived in. Harry smiled automatically when he saw her and gravitated towards her side.

'I'll see you soon, guys,' said Harry, waving at his two friends. Hermione smiled.

'Yes! We'll all be able to go to Diagon Alley together, right?'

'I don't see why that would be a problem,' said Minerva, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. 'We were thinking of going a few weeks before the start of term.'

'That would suit us perfectly,' said Mrs Weasley. 'How about… the 14th of August?'

'Sounds good, though I'll have to speak to Albus first,' Minerva agreed.

'Great!' piped up Ron. 'But, Harry, you'll be able to visit before then, right? The 14th of August is over a month away!'

Harry glanced up at Minerva, who caught his eye and smiled.

'Of course, Mr Weasley, providing your mother is fine with it-'

'Harry can come whenever he'd like,' beamed Mrs Weasley. 'And you too, Hermione, dear.'

'Thanks Mrs Weasley, but I might not be able to come as often,' said Hermione, a bit sadly. 'My parents have to drive, and we live several hours away…'

'Well, Miss Granger, you could always connect your house to the Floo network,' said Minerva.

'Really? Would that work- in a Muggle house?'

'I don't see why not,' replied Minerva. 'I'll speak to Albus about getting it done. This way you'll be easily and quickly be able to visit The Burrow and other magical places that grant you access.'

Hermione grinned, and with that, Minerva and Harry finally said their goodbyes and stepped into the cool green flames behind them, shouting ' _Hogwarts- Albus' office!_ ' as they did so, and soon Harry was being spat out onto the carpeted floor of Albus' office, coughing madly (he'd accidentally inhaled some of the smoky fumes) but feeling more happy than he had in quite some time.

* * *

 **A/N: Yay, another chapter! This one is my longest one yet, I think. I hope it wasn't too boring, but I thought it was important to show Harry just enjoying a fun, normal day with his friends.**

 **The next chapter will (hopefully) be posted before the end of the month. It's one I'm really looking forward to. One of my New Years Resolutions is to post more regularly and consistently when it comes to this story, so hopefully I'll be able to keep it up.**

 **A MASSIVE thanks to everyone who has left some reviews. I really appreciate it, and the last few ones really inspired me to finish off this chapter as soon as possible. So thank you!  
**

 **I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years/Holidays/Christmas :)**


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